The Crystal Kingdom
by katoptrismagyk
Summary: An ancient prophecy has come to pass, changing the life of an ordinary girl forever. The Queen has been betrayed and darkness threatens the land once more. It is up to a stubborn half demon to ensure that the coveted Jewel of Four Souls and its Keeper does not fall into the wrong hands, discovering a few truths about himself along the way.
1. History

**Author's Note:**

Hi all. I'm back with a new story.

This chapter just gives you a general backdrop of the story. The actual story begins from the next chapter onward.

Enjoy!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own InuYasha.

* * *

There was a time when darkness once covered the earth as the battle for supremacy between demons and humans waged on for years on end. It was a very dangerous time to be alive for any living being. Every day was a gamble for survival and there was no guarantee that you would live to see another sunrise. Nature turned on itself, the skies always a dull red color or bleak gray. There was no color and the people learned to be wary of the bright flowers that adorned the wasteland luring hapless victims to death by poison. Despair and death hung heavy on everyone's shoulders.

Then came the rising of a powerful priestess, called Midoriko. She rallied all the humans and demons alike who wished for peace and to end the terrible war. She was a force to be reckoned with and she earned the respect of all who followed her. The demons also feared her since she could purify their very essence with her spiritual powers. But she was nothing if not a strategist. She allied herself with the powerful Inu taiyoukai clans and with the help of a band of brave humans formed the Resistance and led the campaign to end the power struggle between the King of the south, Onigumo and the Demons of the east.

Midoriko's campaign lasted a long 5 years before her husband managed to trap King Onigumo in a burning chamber thereby killing him. But by this time, the demons had joined forces with Onigumo's army against a common foe. In the last legendary and terrible battle Midoriko single handedly took on six powerful demons, the leaders of the east. For seven days and seven nights she fought them while her people held back the army of the enemy. She managed to purify three of the demons, but the three remaining were deadly opponents and she was tiring. Midoriko knew that if she failed, the world would fall into a darkness from which there would be no rising. In a final effort, she concentrated all her spiritual powers and forced the essence of the three remaining demons into a small round crystal jewel that she always wore around her neck. This did not kill the demons, but they were all bound inside the jewel. To completely seal them so that the jewel may never be shattered she bound the jewel with her own soul.

And so it was that Midoriko sacrificed her very soul so that the world would be rid of much evil. People learned in the lore of such magic came to the conclusion that the soul of Midoriko waged a never ending battle with the souls of the three demons, with neither side winning or losing. The jewel came to be called as the Jewel of Four Souls and the energy pulsing through it made it a very powerful and coveted item. It was entrusted into the care of the descendants of Midoriko who became its keepers.

It took another year for the enemy to be completely dispersed or destroyed. The Resistance under the leadership of Midoriko's son established the first peaceful kingdom that welcomed all the victims of the war and all those who wished to live in peace. But a watch was always kept on the borders of the kingdom, on the lookout for anything that might threaten the hard won peace. The Twelve Nymphs of Ephalia helped the humans and demons to establish a peaceful and powerful capital in the north of the kingdom. The Nymphs were magical creatures appearing in the form of females, with their life source bound to a lake around which the capital city was built. No one knew about their origins, but they were peace loving folk. Some legends say that Midoriko herself was descended from these Nymphs. Others say that she was one of the Twelve. But whatever may be the truth, the Nymphs helped to protect and strengthen the borders of the kingdom with the Jewel of the Four Souls.

500 years have passed since these events took place. Many of the details of the battle and the truths about Midoriko and her final battle have become obscured in myths and legends. The far reaches of the world named this kingdom The Crystal Kingdom in honor of the Jewel of the Four Souls that safe guarded its territories. The Jewel itself was in the keeping of the ruling monarch descended from Midoriko's son, its location unknown to anyone else.


	2. Shadows of the past

The quiet rustling as a maid cleaned the fireplace woke Lord Miroku from deep slumber. He squinted his eyes at the bright sunlight that poured through the windows. He yawned and stretched, trying to ease his sore muscles.

"You should not sleep at your desk, my lord. You have a bed for that purpose."

Miroku looked up with an affectionate smile at his housekeeper. The old woman was more like a mother to him than anyone else.

"I have a deadline to meet, Nabiki." He said. "The Queen will have my head if I don't finish on time."

"Nonsense!" Nabiki scowled as she put down a cup of steaming hot coffee on his desk with rather more force than was necessary. "Queen Rin is a sensible woman. She would not want her royal librarian work himself to an early grave."

Miroku smiled at her, knowing it was useless to argue. Muttering darkly under her breath about men who still behaved like children, Nabiki left to go see about breakfast.

Miroku took a fortifying sip of his coffee as he stood near the window enjoying the quiet of the morning as the maid finished cleaning his study. The streets were quiet, waiting for the vendors to open their stalls and cry out their wares. Soon, it would be full of people exclaiming about the beauty of something and haggling over the price of some others. The air would be full of the squawk of birds and the yells of children.

The Fountain city, so named for the numerous fountains to be found scattered about, was indeed a beautiful place. It was constructed on a small rocky mountain in such a way that it could also double as a fortress in times of war. At the centre, set on the highest point was a beautiful castle, the home of the Queen. This was followed by 10 streets known as circles, each in the shape of a huge ring surrounding the castle and each one set wider and higher than the one above. The last was surrounded by a huge and thick wall. This wall had many gates and towers set into it in intervals. The top of the wall was wide enough to allow four soldiers to walk abreast and was constantly patrolled.

Many of the nobles of the court kept beautiful houses on the first circle just below the castle, with the common people occupying the lower streets. Many of them stayed here for the better part of a year, leaving their distant estates under care of stewards. Miroku smiled to himself as he thought of all the nobles who looked down on him for choosing to live on the third street. For himself, he found the common neighborhood and the colorful market place more comfortable than being surrounded by snotty nobles. But it did have its disadvantages, especially when he was researching something for the Queen. He did have an impressive collection of scrolls and ancient texts, but it was nothing compared to the library in the castle.

The Festival of Hope was only a month away. It was the most important festival celebrated throughout the kingdom. It commemorated the vanquishing of the darkness and coming of the Jewel of Four Souls. It was a day when good triumphed over evil and hope was reborn from the ashes of a terrible war. This year being its 500th anniversary, the Queen had ordered him to collect all the data regarding the life and death of her ancient ancestor, Midoriko which was to be sent out to all the schools in the kingdom so that people may never forget the price that had to be paid for their present day happiness and peace. It was hard work, trying to decipher scrolls written who-knows-how-many-years ago in languages long forgotten by humans and demons alike. But Miroku was a lore master at heart and enjoyed these sorts of assignments the Queen set. Having some spiritual powers also helped in understanding the scrolls, especially since some of these ancient texts were actually seals to powerful and ancient creatures, some even more deadly than demons.

Miroku finished his coffee and with a groan, once more seated himself at his desk. He had to order these scrolls which he had worked on late into the night yesterday before he could go to the palace and continue to search for more. He thought about requesting the Queen's permission to visit the monastery where he was trained in his youth. The monastery had a collection of very ancient scrolls and the head monk was much learned in ancient history.

As Miroku shuffled the papers, a very old parchment caught his eye.

'Hmm… I don't recall seeing that yesterday.' he thought to himself as he gently picked it up and unrolled it. He was surprised to see that even though it was very old, the writing seemed quite fresh, the dark red ink barely dry. Something about the scroll seemed to alert his senses and for a moment he thought about just taking the parchment with him to the palace and have the royal priestess Lady Kikyo take a look at it. But his instincts were screaming at him to read the text which seemed to have been written in the language of the court in the beginning of the kingdom. This was not a hurdle for Miroku since he was well versed in many ancient and dead languages. Scowling at the innocent looking parchment causing so much strife within himself, Miroku finally decided to just read it.

He spread the parchment out on top of his desk and kept one hand spread across it to keep it flat as he read and jotted down the translation on a fresh piece of parchment. After completing he began to read the first line of the translated text. A chill seemed to creep up his bones and an unknown dread caught hold of his heart. The bright sunlight hit the old parchment in such a way that the dark red ink looked suspiciously like blood. Sweat formed on his forehead as Miroku read.

"I, Xahar, on this evil day have had a terrible vision. The red spider and silver axe shall rise again and destroy the labors of the white dove. Darkness shall once more devour the land. Trust shall die and hopes wither. The lost keeper and the forgotten brother must be united lest the darkness have no end. This I have seen even as I watch a jewel pulse with unholy light as the demons are devoured and my friend disappeared. I write this down in hopes that it may be a guiding light to those cursed to be in another darkness."

Miroku sat back with a gasp, his heart pounding as the words became imprinted in his mind. He was so agitated that he could not even begin to guess what the prophecy, if that is what it was, was talking about. Miroku began pacing in front of his fire as his mind teemed with questions and no answers. He debated dismissing the jingling of his senses as mere fantasy. But something in him insisted that this was a warning of dark times coming. The only clue he had was the white dove which was the symbol of the ruling monarchs of the kingdom. And he knew he had read about the silver axe somewhere. He continued to pace, deep in thought as the city came alive outside. Finally, after nearly an hour he gave up. He needed serious help in deciphering this prophecy. And something told him that it was imperative he get that help now.

Miroku had always followed his instincts no matter how ridiculous it may seem on the outside. They had yet to guide him wrong. He had to get to the palace and seek out Lady Kikyo. She would have answers, he was sure. She was an exceptionally powerful priestess of common origins. But her thirst for knowledge had taken her on long journeys and rarely travelled paths. She was a store house of ancient lore and myths. Then he needed to get an audience with the Queen. Having decided on his course, Miroku snatched up the two parchments and stuffed them inside his robes before dashing out of the room. He paused as he eyed himself in the hallway mirror. His shoulder length hair, which was usually tied back in a neat ponytail hung about his head giving him a wild appearance. And he was still dressed in yesterday's clothes. Deciding that he would take care of his appearance once he reached his office in the palace, Miroku ran out unheeding Nabiki's frantic calls about breakfast.

Kagura woke up with a headache. This was normal for her as she was part of the Queen's Council. Queen Rin was nothing if not a rebel. It was probably the result of being raised in a very strict and traditional manner. The late King was famous for his penchant for traditions and strict observance of the law. He certainly had his followers, but Kagura had to admit that it had often felt stifling. In a freak hunting accident, in which the royal hunting dogs had turned on their master and bitten him mercilessly, the king had bled to death before help could be reached. That had left his only daughter and heir to take up the throne at the tender age of 14.

With no mother to guide her, many of the more politically oriented nobles had thought to control the young Queen. But they had not bargained for her will of steel. She had quickly proven herself as above their machinations, even going so far as to threaten the lives of said nobles and their families. She had nearly carried them out too, before a few close friends managed to change her mind. Ever since that day, the nobles had steered clear of her, letting her do as she pleased, but secretly muttering behind her back. Giving Rin free reign was not a bad idea, as the people soon found. She was a just ruler and cared deeply about her people. She had gathered a few trusted and wise people around her, to help her rule this vast kingdom. The more the people loved her, the more the nobles who had much power during her father's rule despised her. Some had even gone as far as to say that she was responsible for the late king's death. But Rin could not have cared less about these mindless rumors. She had better things to do.

Kagura thought back to all the assassination attempts on the Queen during the 3 years of her reign. The Council was fiercely protective of their Queen and had thwarted all of them. Of course, having a gifted seer who could predict most of these attempts also helped. Kagura smiled wryly to herself. She was a powerful wind demon and most people thought that she was Rin's bodyguard. What most people did not know was that she was also a very talented seer. In a way, she was her bodyguard. Having grown up with Rin, whose mother had raised the orphaned wind demon found abandoned in the palace grounds, Kagura had a unique connection to Rin as she saw her as her younger sister, which alerted her to any possible attacks on the Queen.

Kagura hummed to herself as she navigated the vast halls of the palace towards the kitchens. Having a cup of soothing green tea under the cherry tree outside of the kitchens was her early morning ritual. It helped to calm her for the day ahead which would be full of arguing with the stubborn nobles who preferred to fatten their pockets as opposed to helping the people. If she and the other Ruling Council could not handle them, the Queen would have to get involved and everyone knew that was a bad idea.

Kagura sipped her tea and watched as the nobles and other courtiers trickled in through the main gates of the palace. Her location gave a clear view to the main gates of the palace without being observed in return. A flash of silver caught her eye and she looked up to see the General of the Queen's army walk past and into the entrance hall of the palace. Lord Sesshomaru was a very powerful inu taiyoukai, the last of his family. His long silver hair was the envy of all the ladies of the court. Bangs lay low on his forehead, covering the purple crescent moon, the mark of his family. He was a formidable opponent, cold and deadly. His eyes were a deep golden shade, but his countenance cold and stern. He had been the General of the army under the late king and had been the only one allowed to keep his position when Rin ascended the throne. Everyone thought that he would chew out Rin, but he was strangely very protective of her. Theirs was a relationship no one could understand.

Kagura was shaken out of her musings to see a very strange sight. The royal librarian had practically run in through the front gates, almost running down the guards in his haste. And instead of entering the entrance hall like the other nobles, he was making a bee line for her. Kagura blinked as she tried to understand what was going on. Then her reason caught up with her senses and she realized that Miroku could not have seen her. So he must be trying to enter the kitchens. As he came nearer, Kagura observed that his hair was down and messy and he seemed to have run all the way to the palace as he was gasping for breath. He also seemed to be dressed rather shabbily and if her memory served her right, he was still in the clothes he had on yesterday. Kagura shook her head, the feather adorning her bun of hair wobbling precariously. She contemplated merely observing his strange antics in silence, but her curiosity got the better of her. She got up quietly from her spot and went forward so that she stood in Miroku's direct path.

"Good morning, Lord Miroku." Kagura said "What seems to be the hurry?"

Miroku almost had a heart attack when Lady Kagura appeared out of nowhere. His already frantic nerves almost snapped as he almost crashed into her in his mad rush. He had wanted to enter the palace through the kitchens and take a short cut to his office to clean up before going in search of Kikyo. He did not want any undue curiosity from his fellow nobles. For a moment, he panicked as Kagura's question registered.

"Why don't you sit with me for a while and calm down ?" Kagura said as she gestured to a small wooden table with two short benches on either side, situated underneath the giant cherry tree in the courtyard.

Miroku hesitated, but then he thought that it would be a bad idea to rush into the palace even if it was through the kitchens. Kikyo might not have gotten to the palace yet. And Kagura seemed to have tea and fresh bread. The rumbling from his stomach finally decided him as Miroku nodded his thanks and followed her to the table.

Kagura poured a fresh cup of tea to her impromptu visitor and pushed a plate of bread and some cheese towards him across the table. Miroku still seemed out of breath, but he had lost the wild look in his eyes. He seemed to have calmed down and Kagura let him take a few bites of the bread before questioning him.

"So, what is the matter Miroku?" she asked.

If she had not been watching him carefully, she would have missed the way he seemed to freeze for a moment before continuing to chew thoughtfully. Kagura frowned as she thought about his strange behavior. Miroku was normally open and cheerful, always cracking jokes and trying to cop a feel from the ladies. But he appeared wary and even somewhat frightened.

"It's a wonderful morning, isn't it?" Miroku decided to play dumb. "Every morning after a new moon feels brighter than on other days."

Kagura narrowed her eyes at him from across the table even as both her demon senses and sight searched for the reason of his edginess. But she could only see the future, not look into the past and analyze what caused his agitation.

"Miroku…"

He gulped as he heard the dangerous edge to Kagura's voice. She was not someone to be crossed lightly and it was not pleasant to have her undivided attention. He had wanted to tell Kikyo first, but Kagura would get it out of him. She was a powerful demon and was not known for her patience. It would be less painful for him if he gave in. He sighed internally. It wasn't that he didn't trust Kagura. It's just that Kikyo would have a better idea of deciphering the parchment's cryptic message and he did not want to look like a fool if it all came to nothing. But then again, Kagura was a gifted seer and prophecies were supposed to her thing. 'Maybe she can make better sense of it.' He thought.

Kagura watched the conflicting emotions flitter across his face. Miroku rarely revealed his mind so openly. Something must have upset him a lot to lose his cool like this.

"I found a parchment today." Miroku began in a quiet voice.

"So?" Kagura raised an eyebrow at this. He was the librarian. Wasn't he supposed to find parchments?

Miroku scowled at her and began to rummage inside his robes. He brought out two tightly rolled scrolls. One appeared to be ancient but the other seemed new. He put both on the table between them.

"This" he said tapping the ancient scroll "is something I have never seen in my entire life. It was lying among the papers on my desk this morning."

"You must have taken it from the palace library." Kagura said.

Everyone knew of the assignment the Queen had set him for the festival celebrations.

"You don't understand." Miroku said in earnest as he leaned forward, one hand resting on top of the parchment. "I had gone through all the scrolls I took from the library last night. This was not among them."

"So, it probably came from your own collection." Kagura said.

Miroku shook his head in irritation. "No! Anyway where it came from is not important."

Kagura raised her eyebrows at this as Miroku opened the new looking parchment and turned it around and towards her. "I translated it. Read what it says."

Kagura looked at him skeptically, but pulled the scroll closer and bent down to read the small script which seemed to have been written in great haste. It took her all of 5 minutes to read it, but by the time she was finished, her face was deathly pale and her hands shook.

"You understand this." It was a statement. Miroku had watched Kagura's reaction and thought that perhaps she had been the better choice than Kikyo.

"Only some of it." Kagura licked her lips that had suddenly gone dry.

"The white dove probably signifies the Queen." Miroku said. "I know I have read about a silver axe somewhere. But I can't recall it now."

Kagura had a grim expression on her face. "The silver axe was the symbol of Onigumo, King of the south during the dark ages."

Miroku's moth was an O shape as he processed that. "So the white dove is…"

"Midoriko." Kagura confirmed. "She was the first one to use such a symbols. Here descendants simply carried on with her choice."

"Oh." Miroku said. "So who is this Xahar? And what about this red spider and the keeper and the rest?"

"The ruling monarch is often referred to as keeper in connection with the Jewel." Kagura mused, thinking out loud.

"But it's talking of a lost keeper." Miroku said with a frown. "The Queen's not lost. Rin is right here!"

"Mmm… it doesn''t make much sense." Agreed Kagura. "But there is one thing we can safely assume."

""What's that?" Miroku asked.

"Since we found explicit mention of Midoriko and Onigumo through the symbols both used, we can safely assume that the spider refers to a demon. And also since it talks of a second darkness, it must be one of the demons that Midoriko fought and supposedly killed."

Miroku had to admit that her reasoning made sense.

"So you are saying that somehow this spider demon escaped and survived all these centuries and is now trying to make a comeback?"

"I don't know as to the time the prophecy refers to. Seers can rarely tell the time when their prophecies will come to pass. But if this parchment turned up out of the blue as you say, I'd take it as more than just a coincidence. We have to notify the Queen, now!" declared Kagura as she stood up and marched away in the direction of the kitchen. She looked back at Miroku and asked, "Are you not coming? After all you found the accursed scroll."

Miroku grumbled under his breath about impatient wind demons, but he picked up the scrolls and hurried after Kagura.


	3. A visitor in the dark

Kagome woke with a start. For a moment she lay blinking on her narrow bed, the rough blanket twisted about her feet. She ran her eyes around the small and shabby room. It was pitch dark with only a faint star light coming in through the open window. She wondered about that until she recalled that tonight was the new moon. A breeze came in through the window bringing with it a foul stench from outside.

Kagome and her mother Mayu lived in the poorest section of the Fountain City. Their house was on the lowest circle, which was actually at the foot of the mountain over which the rest of the city was built. Only the poorest of the poor lived here, barely scraping together a living. The houses were all crammed together and the streets and alleyways were very narrow. It was also a dangerous place, since this was the home of many thugs and thieves. It was common to see fights breaking out in this part of the city. The jurisdiction of the Crown was not often acknowledged in these parts making it somewhat alienated from the rest of the city.

Kagome turned to lie on her side trying to go back to sleep. Suddenly there was a whisper of wind that disturbed the reed curtain that acted as the door to her room and the hairs on her arm stood up. Kagome suddenly sat up wondering if someone had broken into the shop below.

'It would not be the first time.' She thought. 'When will they learn we have even less than they do?'

Taking a deep breath and trying to calm her nerves, she reached for a short knife that she always kept under her bed roll. Kagome stood up and walked carefully out of her room, the knife clutched in her right hand. The small hall was clear of any intruders. She turned to her right to go check out the kitchen, when a slight movement behind her had her whirling around knife at the ready.

"Kagome?" Whispered a gentle voice.

"Mama!" Kagome sighed in relief.

"What are you doing, jumping around with that knife?" scolded Mayu in a whisper.

"Something woke me up." Kagome said "I thought it was an intruder."

"Kagome…" Mayu sighed. "You know you are supposed to wake me up. It's dangerous to confront a thief by yourself."

"I can take care of myself, mama!" Kagome began indignantly.

But Mayu raised a hand forestalling their daily argument of whether Kagome was old enough to take care of herself or not.

"I too heard a noise." Mayu said overlooking her daughter's scowl. "Let's make sure it was only you making a racket and not an unwanted visitor."

Saying this, Mayu went into the kitchen and peered about in the dark. She did not wish to light a lamp that might alert their intruder if there was any. Not sensing anything in the kitchen she came back out in the hall where Kagome was standing with her arms crossed and scowling fiercely at the wall.

'She is so stubborn…just like her father' Mayu thought affectionately as she went to stand before a closed door. This door opened to a staircase which went down into the antique shop below. The shop was only a single room lined with dusty shelves that held a few baubles and trinkets. There was a small counter underneath which was kept their little cash locked up in a box. Mayu usually took this box up with her when she closed shop every evening. So unless you were interested in ancient worthless junk, there was not anything to rob from the shop. But Mayu knew that the people who had broken in before had been after something else, namely herself and Kagome.

Kagome grumbled to herself about her mother's over protectiveness as she watched Mayu sliding the latch open trying to stay as quiet as possible. She gripped her knife in her hand and went to stand behind her mother.

Mayu eased the door open slowly and looked down the stairs. The room was completely dark and quiet. It did not look like anyone had forced entry, but some instinct told Kagome that someone was down there. She took a sharp breath and saw Mayu crouch down. She also must have sensed the other presence.

Gesturing at her daughter to stay here, Mayu quietly descended the staircase in a crouched position. She reached the bottom and leaned on the counter that was to her immediate right. Slowly going down on all fours she inched forward and peeked around the corner of the counter and looked directly into two gleaming pools of…something. The suddenness caused Mayu to let out a small scream as she fell back on her haunches trying to get away from whatever it was.

Kagome had not really heeded her mother's command to stay. Instead, she had set off down the stairs as soon as Mayu reached the side of the counter. She was halfway down when she heard Mayu scream and fall back.

"No!" Kagome yelled as she dashed the rest of the way, the knife held out in front of her. "Mama! Are you okay?"

Mayu heard Kagome's scream and looked up to see the silhouette of a man crouched down in front of the counter. Her eyes became more adjusted to the darkness and she realized that the man had looked up at Kagome but did not seem interested in attacking either of them…yet.

Kagome reached her and started to pull her back towards the stairs.

"Child… let go." Mayu gasped. "I'm fine. I was just startled."

"Oh…" kagome said lamely as she dropped to the floor beside her mother.

"Who are you?" Mayu asked sharply "what do you want?"

Kagome looked up wild eyed as she caught sight of a dark shadow and once more tightened the grip on her knife. She would go down fighting, that was for sure!

"I…I mean you no harm." Said a husky voice out of the darkness. "I just needed a place to hide for a couple of hours."

The voice sent shivers down Kagome's spine. It was a man's voice and yet it was not. He was probably around her age. So it was a young man. But there was something about his voice that left her stomach in knots.

Something made Mayu trust him, although she could not have said why. Usually she was wary of strangers and she was sure that she had never heard this man's voice before.

There was a slight grunt as the young man leaned on the counter for support, breathing heavily.

"You are injured." Mayu said as Kagome shivered beside her. She put a hand on her daughter's shoulder to calm her down.

"It's only a scratch." The man rasped out. "I'll be fine by morning."

"Hmm…no." Mayu countered. "Your breathing doesn't make it sound like a small scratch."

"I was running from some idiots, okay? I'm just out of breath." He seemed to be getting irritated with her prying.

Mayu sighed thinking about the stubbornness of youth. This young man was probably an orphan. There were many in the lowest circle. He probably led a hand to mouth existence, often fighting with others like himself for food scraps. Incidents like these made her count her blessings and overlook every hardship she had had to endure after the death of her husband. Her maternal heart went out to this poor boy.

"Kagome, why don't you find us some light?"

"Huh?" Kagome turned incredulous eyes on her mother as if questioning her sanity.

"Go and light the lamp." Mayu sighed. "There is one under counter. Go on." She shooed at her daughter.

Kagome stood up slowly and felt rather than saw the man tensing. Then she realized that he could probably see the gleam of her knife. Huffing in irritation, she tucked the knife around a small band she wore on her thigh underneath her shabby clothes and stumbled over to the counter. It took a few minutes of fiddling before she located the lamp and the box of matches. She quickly lighted it and placed it on the counter. The feeble light threw long shadows on the walls and illuminated Mayu sitting on the ground in front of the stairs and a young man with long dark hair crouching in front of the counter. He had a stubborn looking chin peppered with stubbles of a beard and fierce dark eyebrows. His bangs came down almost to his eyes and Kagome was somewhat disconcerted to see that his dark eyes were fixed on her with a strange intensity.

"Let me take a look at your leg." Mayu said.

It was then that Kagome noticed the leg the man had extended out on the floor. His feet were bare and his pants of rough wool were dirty and torn. His shirt was drenched in perspiration and there were many scratches and cuts on his face and arms. The cut on his leg was nasty if the blood seeping out to the floor was any indication.

"I told you I will be fine by morning." Said the man "Just let me stay here till then…please" he added almost as an afterthought.

Mayu got up pretending not to hear him and started searching behind the counter.

"Kagome, run up to my room and grab my medicine bag."

Kagome watched as a scowl adorned the man's face.

"Will you be okay while I'm gone?" Kagome asked her mother in a whisper.

"Kagome!" Mayu raised her eyes in exasperation and gave her daughter 'the look'. Kagome translated it correctly as 'shut up and do as I tell you' and ran up the stairs to get the small satchel in which her mother kept some bandages and herbs.

When she came back down, she saw Mayu sitting beside the stranger who had a stubborn look in his eyes as he glared at her mother. Mayu held a pair of scissors in her hands and was attempting to remove his clothes so she could look at his leg.

"Just give in. It's easier than convincing her to leave it be." Kagome said with a wry smile.

The stranger stared at her for a minute and sighed and said, "Keh!"

Mayu just smiled serenely as he finally took away his hand which had been clutching at his wound. She slowly began to cut away the cloth, trying not to yank the wounded flesh. The stranger gritted his teeth but made no sound.

"Kagome, go boil some water. I need to sterilize this wound."

Kagome climbed the stairs a lot more slowly this time around. This man was beginning to fascinate her. Reaching the door that led to their living quarters, Kagome looked back. She could see nothing of her mother or the stranger. Both were hidden behind the counter and the shadows cast by the lamp.

"What's your name?" she heard her mother ask.

After a moment, the young man murmured softly, "Inuyasha."

By the time Kagome returned with the boiling water and a wooden pail full of fresh cool water, Mayu had cut away the cloth surrounding the wound on Inuyasha's leg. Kagome gasped upon seeing the wound. Even under the weak light, it looked nasty. The flesh looked torn up and red. Blood was still oozing out from the cut even though it did not look very deep.

Kagome sat beside her mother, ready to help in any way. She watched Inuyasha out of the corner of her eye. He had leant his head back on the counter and had closed his eyes. If not for the grimaces of pain, she would have thought that he had fallen asleep. It took a few hours, but the wound was bathed and a soothing salve had been applied. Mayu debated whether to stitch up the wound or not. But she finally decided to just bandage it with clean strips of cloth since the wound was not deep. She finally sat back and admired her handiwork. Inuyasha seemed to have finally succumbed to exhaustion and had fallen asleep.

"I'm going to get him a pair of your father's pants." Mayu said to Kagome. "I think they will fit him. He certainly can't go about in his present pair." She got up and stretched before yawning. Half the night was gone and dawn was fast approaching. She went up to her room, leaving Kagome alone with Inuyasha.

"Why?"

The question startled Kagome who had been staring at his long black hair. It was dirty but not matted. He obviously liked and cared for his hair. It was longer than hers, reaching past his waist.

Kagome looked up to see his dark eyes staring at her intently from beneath his bangs.

"Why what?" she asked confused.

"Why are you helping me, a stranger?" Inuyasha asked. He had never known kindness and was half inclined to be suspicious of these two women who had insisted on treating his wound. But looking at their faces, he could not bring himself to do it. Having lived on the streets his whole life, he had sharpened senses when it came to reading others. There was nothing malicious about these women. They seemed genuinely kind and caring. Their first reaction had been understandable, considering that they had thought him to be an intruder.

Inuyasha looked into the girl's eyes, trying to find answers. There was something about this girl that had his heart beat increasing and his stomach twisting in circles. He had a strange urge to protect this girl, though from what, he had no clue. He had been running blindly through strange alleyways trying to escape from the gang that was following him. The gang was led by a wolf demon and had some really weird members. They were his sworn enemies though he had no idea why this was so. There were many strange things about himself that he had never truly understood. But he did not have anyone to ask about these things. And on the streets, ignorance was a great weakness. So he learned to accept without question whatever came his way pretending to know all about the whys and wherefores.

He usually stuck to the streets he was familiar with. But a few members of the gang had come upon him on the one night he was truly weak. Thankfully, the wolf demon was not with them, so they had not recognized him by his scent. They had chased him anyway for sport. Without his usual senses to direct him, he had lost his way trying to escape them and had ended up in an unfamiliar part of the circle. Something had compelled him to break into a shabby looking shop and hide till dawn. He had no hope of thwarting his enemies in his weakened form. But now, he wondered if it was more than his instinct for survival that had brought him here.

"You needed our help." Kagome said.

Inuyasha had almost forgotten that she was still sitting beside him, so lost was he in his musings.

"I could have been a robber or worse." He said. "I could have hurt you." Had these women no sense of self preservation? Were they this friendly to all strangers? He felt his beast stirring from within at the thought of Kagome unprotected. 'It must be nearing dawn.' He thought.

"But you didn't." Kagome said. She seemed just as stubborn as her mother.

"That's not the point!" Inuyasha said exasperated.

"You are supposed to be grateful here!" she exclaimed.

"I am grateful! I just don't want you to do this to every stranger." He said loudly. "Not everyone is like me, you know!"

That seemed to deflate her. Seeing her drooping visage made him feel guilty. "Kagome…" he called gently.

"I know." She said. "I know everyone is not like you." She looked up at him and continued. "You are the first intruder we have helped."

"Just don't make it a habit." Inuyasha sighed and closed his eyes once more before they flew open as something she said registered.

"Wait… first intruder? You mean there were others?" he demanded.

"Uh…yeah. This is the lowest circle, remember?" Kagome said, wondering about his reaction. 'It's like he cares what happens to us… ugh! Get your head out of the clouds, girl!' she admonished to herself.

Inuyasha found himself stifling a growl as he thought of intruders attacking Kagome.

"Where is your father?" he asked a bit fiercely.

"He passed away a long time ago." Kagome smiled sadly. "I have never seen him."

"Oh…" Inuyasha felt his heart twinge as he watched the sadness in her eyes. He wanted to wipe it away and fill it with the fierceness and life he had first seen in them.

"uh…um…sorry" he felt like banging his head on the wall. He was no good with all this sympathy and stuff.

But Kagome seemed grateful as she shook her head and smiled lightly at him. "Like I said, it was a long time ago. We did not live in the city then."

"Huh? So where did you live?"

"We lived in one of the villages near the coast." Kagome said. "Father died before I was born and a couple of years later, there was a famine. So we moved to the city like so many others, in hopes of finding a good living."

Kagome did not know why she was telling this stranger her life history. But she felt a strange connection to him, as if he was a long lost friend.

"Oh…" he said again, wondering how she managed to smile so beautifully. It could not have been simple, scraping a life in this godforsaken place. In order to prosper in this city, you needed to reach the higher circles and for that you needed money and power.

"So, what about you? Where are your parents?" Kagome asked brightly.

Inuyasha was spared from answering as Mayu came back down the stairs with a huge bundle in her hands which she dumped near them on the floor.

"I was trying to find you some shoes." She said with a sigh as she began sorting through the bundle with Kagome's help. She picked up a pair of woolen pants, much like his own and almost the same size.

"This belonged to my husband." Mayu said. "You can have them. And I found you a pair of shoes also. They are rather worn, but sturdy."

Inuyasha sat speechless through all this. Never having known kindness, he had no idea how to react. Seeing his bewildered look, Kagome took pity on him and whispered into his ear as her mother continued to unroll what looked like spare sheets and a blanket.

"You can just say thank you."

Inuyasha turned around to see Kagome smirking lightly at him, a teasing light in her eyes. An involuntary smile tugged on his lips, the sensation quite alien to his facial muscles.

"You won't get up the stairs with that leg and I don't want to injure it further." Mayu said. "So I brought some bedding down. You can sleep here tonight…or what's left of it."

Mayu stood up and looked kindly at the gaping boy sitting on the floor.

"We'll have breakfast in the morning and then you can go…if you want." She said. "Get some rest for now, okay."

She turned to Kagome and said, "We better get to bed too, Kagome. You must be tired as well."

"I'm fine mama." Kagome muttered, but her yawn betrayed her.

Mayu shook her head at her and went up the stairs saying, "Suit yourself, dear."

Kagome scowled, but realized the truth of her mother's words as another yawn fought its way out of her mouth.

"You should get some rest." Inuyasha told her quietly.

"Mmm…" she murmured. "I'll see you in the morning." She stood up and followed her mother. Before she went through the door, she turned back and called out softly "Inuyasha?"

"Yeah?"

"Blow out the lamp before you sleep, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good night." Kagome said as she vanished through the door, leaving behind a very conflicted Inuyasha.

He was astounded at Mayu's offer. He wondered at her kindness directed towards him, who had never done a good deed in his life. But he could not accept it. If he stayed, he would be bringing his problems down on top of them. And he had some big problems, like the gang that had been following him yesterday. At the same time, the thought of never seeing Kagome brought a strange ache to his heart. He sighed and lay down on the bedding as the sky outside lightened, heralding another dawn.

Kagome opened her eyes this time to find her room flooded with light. It was well past dawn, but she was still sleepy. Remembering the events of last night, she shot out of bed wanting to check on Inuyasha. She splashed some water on her face from the basin in her room and ran her ran through her thick hair, trying to tame it down. Straightening her clothes as much as she could, she walked in to the kitchen to see her mother just putting on the kettle. Apparently she too had just woken up.

"Kagome… you're up." Mayu smiled at her daughter. "Go see if Inuyasha is up yet." She smiled to herself seeing the blush creep up her face.

Kagome hopped down the stairs and rounded the counter calling out to their guest, "Good morning Inuyasha! How's your…"

She trailed off, seeing the bedding rolled up neatly. Other than that, there was no trace of their late night visitor. Even the blood on the floor had been cleaned up. She looked around the small room and even checked under the counter. But there was no denying the fact that he was gone. She sat down on the floor where he had been sitting last night, her heart breaking at the thought that she would never see him again.


	4. The Queen's Council

Rin took a deep breath as she began her daily workout session. Every morning she got up at the crack of dawn and went to her private dojo situated near to her rooms in the palace and worked out for 2 hours. The workouts were part of her late father's strict regimen for her. Rin had always been flexible and wiry, so this was no great challenge for her. But she had not been particularly fond of it either. That was until she began weapons training. That had not been in her father's schedule at all. He had been a stickler for tradition and tradition said that the monarch was always protected by a band of faithful bodyguards. Her father had been rather hopeless with his sword and the kingdom might have fallen to enemies a long time ago if it were not for Sesshomaru.

Rin sighed as she thought of the elegant and irritating demon. It was under his insistence that her father allowed her to train in weaponry even though she had a royal guard. Secretly Rin thought that her father might also have been a little afraid of Sesshomaru. He of course, was responsible for training her. If not for him, Rin would have never realized her own skill with the knife. Normally, Kings or Queens had a royal sword. But she had a royal dagger. Its blade was as long as her arm with both edges sharp and deadly. Wielding a knife took a lot of skill and bravery. She still remembered Sesshomaru telling her about the rare number of knife wielders. She often wondered if it was the subtle challenge in his voice that made her determined to become proficient at it herself.

Rin did a perfect flip in mid air and landed gracefully on her feet. She rose slowly and walked over to the bench near the wall and picked up her dagger. She had named it Nightshade. That was the name of a flower she had come across in her history books. It was small and colored brightly purple. It was also deadly poison. Sesshomaru had responded with his characteristic 'Hn' when she told him the name of her dagger. He had probably expected it, considering how obsessed Rin had been with flowers.

Rin gripped the hilt of the dagger and started parrying with an imaginary foe. She had been a child of 7 summers when she first came across Sesshomaru. She had sneaked away from her tutor and had been playing in a meadow below the kitchen courtyard. She had been making a flower crown when she looked up and saw an angel walking towards her. This angel had long silver hair that reached below his knees and was dressed in flowing white robes with a yellow and blue sash, the edge of the sleeves adorned with red markings. But what truly fascinated her was the angel's face. He had a purple crescent moon shape on his forehead and twin maroon streaks on both cheeks. The same color also adorned the back of his eyelids. Rin found herself watching the angel with wonder. The angel apparently knew her name, for he called out to her as he neared and said, "Rin."

His voice had a husky quality. It was quiet and soothing, yet commanding at the same time. He came and sat down beside her. She thought that perhaps he would say something. Na-da. She continued to pick flowers and weave her crown and watched him from the corner of her eyes. He said nothing, but let her do as she pleased while he stared off to the distance. His face was always a blank, but his golden eyes always spoke volumes. After sometime, the angel turned to her and said, "Let's go, Rin."

He got up and walked away. Rin blinked at his retreating figure, then she too jumped up and danced after him, the flower crown clutched tightly in her hand. The angel led her back to the palace and left her in front of her room. In one blink he was gone and Rin was back in the clutches of her tutor.

As the days passed, Rin wondered if the angel had been a figment of her imagination. But the next time she managed to slip away, he appeared again, much the same as last time. He let her play for sometime before leading her back to the palace. This pattern continued and Rin might never have learned the identity of her angel if she had not been sneaking down to the kitchens well past her bedtime for a midnight snack. Hearing a noise in the throne room, she had tiptoed down the hall and hidden behind a tapestry to see who would come out of the throne room opposite. Soon she saw her father come out, talking to her angel. Her child's mind came to the conclusion that her father had appointed this angel as her guardian. It was nearly a year later that she learned that the angel was actually the General of her father's army.

Rin dropped down beside the bench and leaned back on the wall, Nightshade at her side on the floor. She closed her eyes and tried to bring her breathing back to normal. As the years passed, her feelings towards Sesshomaru had changed from awe to friendship to admiration to something else. She had always felt at peace with him, even as a child. Of late, the feelings she experienced if he was in her vicinity had her teeth on edge. It was a weird feeling to be sure…not bad, just weird. Rin sighed as she opened her eyes and stared unseeingly across the room. Since finding out that Sesshomaru was a demon, she had done a lot of research concentrating especially on dog demons and had come to some conclusions. She had a theory as to why she was behaving like this towards Sesshomaru. But the only person who could give satisfactory answers was the demon himself. But Sesshomaru was not very talkative.

'It's a miracle he even manages to say hn!' Rin grumbled to herself. 'Oh well, if my hunch is right, he will probably tell me himself. Even the Ice Prince can't escape his own fate.'

"Your Majesty."

Rin looked up and saw her personal assistant in the doorway to the dojo.

"What is it, Koharu?"

"Your Majesty, Lord Miroku and Lady Kagura seeks an audience with you." Koharu said. "They are waiting in your private sitting room."

"Very well." Rin said as she got up and sheathed her dagger and hung it from her belt.

'I wonder what they want.' She thought as she went to prepare herself for the day ahead. 'Couldn't this business wait till the daily Council meeting?'

Kagura sat calmly in the deep window seat of the Queen's private sitting room. The window overlooked the palace orchards and the view was quite soothing. Even so, Kagura found no pleasure in it today. Her mind was full of the prophecy the librarian had unearthed, questions upon questions chasing one another around in her mind. She had also tried to 'See' if there was any danger. Either there was nothing to see or she was not able to see. The whole thing was giving her a massive headache. Miroku pacing about the room was also not helping.

"Will you just sit down, Miroku!" Kagura scowled at the librarian who had begun muttering under his breath as he paced. Miroku did not even hear her as he thought of the possibilities and continued to wear down the carpet.

"Good morning, Kagura, Miroku." Queen Rin said as she walked into the room dressed in a regal purple kimono. Her hair was done up in a fancy style, piled on top of her head exposing the back of her neck. She was accompanied by her personal assistant.

Seeing the Queen, Miroku stopped his pacing and bowed. Kagura also rose from her seat and did a curtsey. Rin inclined her head in acknowledgment and sat herself on the armchair before the fire. The air had a wintry bite to it despite it still being the beginning of fall.

"What could not wait until the Council, Kagura, Lord Miroku?" Rin asked wondering about the shabby, almost wild appearance of Miroku who was famous for his charming appearance.

Seeing their hesitation, Rin waved her assistant away. "Leave us, Koharu. We are not to be disturbed."

"Very well, your highness." Koharu said and bowed before she left the room, closing the door gently behind her.

"Now, speak." Rin commanded.

Kagura and Miroku looked at each other before he cleared his throat and began. "I found a scroll from among the ones I took from the palace library yesterday, your highness."

Rin glanced up and found Kagura with a fierce scowl on her face. From her expression, the Queen concluded that she was trying to 'See'. 'The matter must be quite serious.' She thought and leaned back in the chair as Miroku continued.

"I had not seen the scroll before today morning. It contained a strange prophecy which I managed to translate." He withdrew two parchments from inside his robes and handed them to the Queen.

"That" he said indicating the older of the two parchments "is the scroll I found. The other is its translation."

Rin unrolled the old parchment and found it written in a language similar to the one in use at court currently. Yet she was not able to understand anything written. It was written in an elegant script in red ink and appeared to have been written in some haste. She put it aside and opened the newer scroll. A neat translation was written in Miroku's hand. She read through the prophecy twice, but still failed to understand the need for urgency she detected in the other two people in the room.

"And why must we concern ourselves with this prophecy?" Rin asked. "Prophecies are made every day. Not all of them come to pass. Regardless, what can we do about this one?"

"My lady, if I may speak frankly" Lady Kagura said. "This prophecy speaks of your ancestor Midoriko and we fear it pertains to a second rising of the darkness which she vanquished long ago."

"And what makes you so sure that this prophecy is coming to pass during this age?" Rin asked. "That is why the both of you are so agitated, yes?"

"My Queen, the way I found this parchment was rather unique." Miroku said. "I had examined all the scrolls on my desk last night, yet this was not among them. But today morning, it was. I feel it as a warning, your highness."

Rin sighed and looked at the innocent looking parchment in her lap. Even though the matter was dire, she was not at all sure about its urgency. But she trusted Kagura and Miroku. And so she could not dismiss their worries out of hand. After all, this was why she formed the Council in the first place, so that others could tell her about matters she was ignorant about.

"Very well. Let us put this prophecy to the Council. Mayhap they will have some insights."

Sesshomaru walked through the palace halls with his customary blank face, his two swords at his side. At first glance people often mistook him to be vain about his appearance what with his long hair and ethereal face. Some have also thought him vain to be carrying two swords. One was his heirloom from his father and rather useless, called Tenseiga. The sword was recovered from his father's body found deep in the mountain realms of the dragon demons beyond the western border of the kingdom. At first he was ecstatic to have gotten the Tenseiga, a sword his father always carried with him. But he found that it could not even cut through paper. Sesshomaru's temper was limitless on that day. But he could not bring himself to cast the Tenseiga into the funeral pyre of his father, the great dog demon Inutaisho. Instead he kept it by his side always, though he was not very clear why he became restless if it was ever out of his reach. His desire to be a powerful and feared demon lead him to have another blade forged, the Bakusaiga. This was an exceptionally powerful demon sword which had led him on great adventures in the land of his forefathers before leading him to the Crystal Kingdom and the palace in the Fountain City. It wasn't until he saw a little girl playing in the meadows that he realized why his beast had led him here.

'Rin!' His beast was always hyper around the young queen. Sesshomaru cursed under his breath and tightened his grip on his inner demon.

'I will not claim her!' he decreed in his most icy voice to his demon.

'Bah! She is ours!' His beast yelled back. 'She is not a child any longer. Why are you so stubborn? She is our destiny! Can't you see that, o wise dog?'

Sesshomaru snarled and caused a minor havoc in the servants he passed along the way. Not that he noticed. He understood that his beast wanted Rin as his mate. He just was not ready to accept it. For every demon, a person is born into this world as their predestined mate. The beast or inner demon often led them towards their mates. Sesshomaru was no exception. When he first clapped eyes on little Rin, he recognized her for what she was, his destined mate. The only problem was she was human.

Inutaisho was betrayed and dead at the hands of his worst enemy all because he had mated with a human woman. And Sesshomaru found that he could not stomach the idea of mating with a human himself. He was not afraid of being betrayed and killed. Rather he resented the fact that he, who had condemned the entire human race for his father's death, was now stuck with a human for a mate. He had tried many times in the past to leave the palace. But he could not do it. His beast would not let him be too far from Rin. It was his demon nature to always protect and watch over his mate. And to complicate matters further, as of late he found that he was becoming attracted to her as a man would to a woman. It was becoming harder and harder to keep her at arm's length and to not see the beautiful woman she had grown into.

Sesshomaru walked into the Council's meeting room with a fierce scowl on his face. Lord Hiten who had been chatting with the Prime Minister Lady Kaede abruptly stopped. Lady Kagura was sitting in her seat with an even fiercer scowl on her face and Miroku was pacing about the room. The queen was yet to arrive but Sesshomaru knew that she was very close to the room. His demon was doing the mental equivalent of bouncing around in his head.

The door behind opened silently and Sesshomaru found his heart skipping a beat as the scent of wildflowers and honeysuckle entered his sensitive nostrils. He took a deep breath discreetly, his face betraying no emotion to the outside world. He turned around and bowed and said "My Queen."

Rin looked at the handsome General and smiled gently. His voice may have been cold while greeting her, but his eyes spoke another story.

"Sesshomaru." She acknowledged and turned to greet the other Council members.

He looked up and found himself face to face with the last Council member, Lady Kikyo, the royal priestess. Her demeanor was even colder than his, if that was possible. She was breathtakingly beautiful to behold with her alabaster skin and long raven hair and coal black eyes. But Sesshomaru had always found her to be rather lifeless despite her beauty, like a statue made out of clay with no real warmth or substance. She was dressed in a simple robe of white and red, but it only added to her almost other worldly beauty.

"Lady Kikyo." Sesshomaru inclined his head in greeting which she returned with a slight nod of her head. He allowed her to pass him before he turned and took the chair on the right of the queen who was sitting at the head of the long oval table. On her left sat the Prime Minister followed by Lord Hiten. On Sesshomaru's right sat Kagura, followed by Miroku. Lady Kikyo occupied the chair at the other end of the table directly opposite to the queen.

"Let us begin." Rin intoned in her clear and strong voice.

Every day the Council met for a one hour session in the morning before each member left to go about his or her own duties. They discussed everything that needed to be done on that day and also any major issues that might be affecting the kingdom like any natural calamities or bandit raids. The members also discussed those matters which needed to be addressed in the court and any direct petitions to the queen.

When the day's business was concluded, Rin once more raised her voice and said, "My lords and ladies, our esteemed librarian has discovered something fantastic. I wish all of you to hear him and give your opinions on the matter."

She sat back and nodded to Miroku. Everyone turned to him curiously wondering what he had to say, except Kagura who was still fiercely concentrating her Sight trying to examine the immediate future for any danger.

Miroku took a deep breath and began his tale. He repeated what he had said to the queen after consulting with Kagura. The translated scroll was passed around so that everyone could read the prophecy. And as had become practice, they all turned to the wind demon for any insights she might have got.

Kagura felt their gazes and sighed. "I am not seeing anything, my lords and ladies."

"Well there you have it." Lord Hiten said throwing down the scroll which he had just finished reading. "The seer is seeing nothing. So, nothing to worry about. This prophecy" he indicated the scroll "is for someone else to worry about. Not us."

Miroku said nothing but his brow was clouded. Sesshomaru was watching Kagura and noticed her scowl as she tried to See.

"Lady Kagura." He turned his head slightly to look at the seer. He felt rather than saw Rin watching him as Hiten continued to mutter about the need to discuss something that would never affect them. Kagura turned to him with a distracted look.

"When you said you cannot see anything, did you mean nothing pertaining to this prophecy or nothing in general?" Sesshomaru questioned.

He watched as Kagura's eyes widened slightly before she began to scowl with a deep look of concentration. The room fell silent and watched and waited.

Maybe ten minutes had passed before Kagura turned panicked eyes towards the queen and said in a breathless voice "I can't see!" she clutched the arms of her chair in such a violent grip that her knuckles turned white. "I-I can't see anything!" she almost wailed.

Sesshomaru's lips set in a grim line. He did not much care for the prophecy. But Kagura's statement did not sit well with him. Seers were not very common and their magic was obscure at best to the ordinary people. Yet he did not believe that a seer would just lose his ability overnight. Perhaps if they were undergoing emotional stress, but Kagura did not fall in that category. That left only one explanation. Someone was intentionally tampering with her abilities. He wondered if that could be done and turned his eyes to the one person in the room who could explain magic.

Lady Kikyo sat calmly, her expression betraying nothing as the Council members began muttering and arguing among themselves after Kagura's announcement. She felt herself being watched and found the cold eyes of the general trained on her. She inclined her head in mute acknowledgement of his unvoiced question.

"My queen." She began in her quiet authoritative voice. "I think we should all just calm down and examine the facts." She looked around the table and caught everyone's eye. Rin and Sesshomaru had almost identical blank expressions. The others were listening raptly. Miroku was finally getting the advice that he had original wanted and Kagura was looking at her hopefully. Hiten had a scowl on his face, his long dark braid twitching in agitation as his demon became restless. Lady Kaede, the oldest member on the council and the only one older than herself was also listening keenly.

"Lord Miroku came across an ancient prophecy." Kikyo continued, addressing the queen. "It prophecies dark times, but gives no indication as to the timeline. So as Lord Hiten so eloquently pointed out, let us not concern ourselves with that for now. It should not be forgotten, but our concern right now should be about why Lady Kagura's Sight is failing her."

Kikyo turned to look at Kagura and said "Since you are an orphan, we do not know anything about your origins. Perhaps this gift was a part of your heritage. I know a little about Sight. Mayhap, you are seeing nothing because there is, in fact, nothing to see. Or maybe because of your agitation you yourself are blocking your vision."

Kagura frowned as Kikyo continued. "The gift of Sight is a strange gift. Sometimes a person possesses it from birth. Sometimes, it is triggered later in life. There have also been instances where seers lost their Sight after a few years for no discernible reason." She looked kindly at Kagura and said softly, "mayhap, you have lost your gift, Kagura."

There was a silence around the table as everyone digested what Kikyo had said. Kagura looked shocked and pale. Miroku was flabbergasted and Lady Kaede looked with pity on the wind demon. The Queen was troubled and Sesshomaru was as cold as ever. Hiten alone looked pleased by this news, though he tried to hide it behind a contrite expression. But the general did not miss the strange gleam in his eyes and his internal agitation increased. Hiten had always been envious of Kagura's ability to See. He had made no secret of the fact that he thought it was a form of cheating. He was a superb fighter, though not in the league of Sesshomaru and was second-in-command of the army. But he was often narrow minded and set in his ways. The general knew all this, but there was something in the strange gleam in his eyes that brought him a nameless disquiet.

Rin felt the beginnings of a massive headache, and her day had not even begun. She took a deep breath and addressed the priestess. "Are you certain, Lady Kikyo?"

"Your highness, nothing is certain in these matters." Returned she, with a sympathetic shake to her head. "Perhaps a couple of days of rest will put matters to right?" she looked at Kagura who was still pale. If she didn't know better, she would have said that Kagura was on the verge of tears.

Rin sighed and turned to the Prime Minister. Rin saw her as a surrogate mother and her wisdom could always be counted on. "What do you think Lady Kaede?"

The lady in question said nothing for a few minutes. She then looked at Kagura who was sitting with downcast eyes and said. "A vacation might do ye good child."

Kagura looked up and made to protest but Kaede talked over her and said, "Even without your sight, we are all completely capable of protecting the queen. But it is imminent that we find out the time when the prophecy will come to pass. For that we need you and your powers. A rest might be what you need. The Lord knows, your job doesn't provide it."

Kagura looked beseechingly at the queen. Rin was heartbroken to see the pain reflected in her adopted sister's eyes. She knew Kagura very well. It was not in her nature to rest. And yet, this is what she must do. She sighed and wondered what to do.

"My lady, if I may?"

The queen looked up and found Miroku looking at her with determined eyes. She inclined her head allowing him to continue.

"I was going to request your permission to visit the monastery were I was trained in my youth in order to complete the task you had set me. They have an impressive collection of scrolls and the head monk, Mushin is highly learned in ancient lore and myths. With your permission, perhaps Lady Kagura can accompany me. The monastery is quite peaceful and is situated deep in the mountains of the east. We would be back before the Hope festival."

Rin looked at Kagura to see how she had taken this. Kagura found a glimmer of hope in Miroku's words and looked at her queen for permission. Rin's heart was glad to see the fighting spirit back in the wind demon's eyes.

"Very well." She said. "Miroku and Kagura shall leave for this monastery as soon as maybe. Let us all hope that both accomplish what they set out to do."

Hiten scowled, but said nothing.

"That was a wise suggestion. Miroku." Lady Kaede praised. "But we must not forget the prophecy."

"I shall have the original and translated versions transcribed and made a part of the royal treasury." Kikyo said. "That way it should be available to all the monarchs at all times."

"Very well. See that it is done today itself, Lady Kikyo." The queen commanded. She then turned to the demon on her right with inquiring eyes.

Sesshomaru understood the unspoken question in her chocolate brown orbs. "Hn." It was his characteristic response. The others except the queen took it to mean that he approved of everything so far and had nothing further to add. He had already made up his mind to send out a few trusted spies to learn the meaning of the glimmer in Hiten's eyes. Rin narrowed her eyes at him, but allowed him to continue his deception of the others.

"The Council is adjourned." The queen rose and swept out of the room. The others followed more leisurely each lost in his or her own thoughts.


	5. The Hanyou

The sky broke out in a riot of colors of pink and gold, heralding the arrival of a new dawn. Inuyasha perched on the roof of a dilapidated building on the rundown street. He took in a deep breath of the fresh early morning air, the light golden sunlight glinting off his long silver hair. The fuzzy white puppy ears almost hidden in his mane of silver hair started twitching as they picked up sounds of running water coming from inside the building he was perched on. Inuyasha listened carefully. With his heightened demon senses, he easily picked up the pattering of light feet that was Mayu. She seemed to have just woken up. Kagome was still fast asleep, her breathing even and regular. Inuyasha took a deep breath, trying to catch Kagome's elusive scent. It was a great pity that the one time they had met he had been in his human form. So he had not been able to truly catch her scent. Sitting on the roof of her bedroom was the closest he had gotten to her in his true form.

A chorus of bird calls were heard from the vast forest surrounding the Fountain City. The city wall kept the trees from encroaching on the people's dwellings. Still, Inuyasha thought it was a great pity that there were very little trees in the city. The palace probably had many and fancy gardens as well. But he preferred the wild untamed nature of the forest better. Being of demon lineage, it was not a difficult task for him to scale the large city wall. But it was considered illegal to scale the walls. You had to use proper gates set at various intervals along the wall to go outside. But Inuyasha did not like using the gates since it meant he had to walk past guards and other civilians and endure their name calling and rough treatment. He could probably defeat them all with his demon strength, but why get in trouble when he can just as easily scale the walls? He had to sneak past the guards to do it, but hey, being a half demon had its perks.

"Morning, mama."

Inuyasha's ears perked up when he picked up on the melodious voice coming from beneath his feet. While he had been day dreaming, the object of his obsession had woken up to greet the new day. Inuyasha sighed in bittersweet remembrance of that night nearly two weeks ago when he had first met the owner of that voice. He felt that night had been a turning point in his life, although he could not have said to which direction it had turned. On that dawn, when he had felt his demon blood taking over his body once again, he had made a vow to himself to always protect Kagome. He had been coming here every night since that day, although the two women were unaware of his vigil. He kept a watch throughout the night and had even scared off an intruder or two. Even drunk men knew better than to mess with a home under the protection of a demon, especially when said demon was growling at them and cracking his knuckles. Inuyasha knew that Mayu and Kagome were more than capable of looking after themselves. After all they had been doing it all these years. Yet he came every night and left at dawn, after hearing Kagome greet her mother. Another thing he did not understand why he was doing, only that he must. His inner demon had always been a quiet one, only speaking when forewarning him of danger in his younger days. As he matured, it had grown almost silent. But now, ever since his encounter with Mayu and Kagome, he had become very vocal and stubborn, hardly giving him a moment's peace. Without even this much contact with Kagome, his inner demon would never shut up and he would get a massive headache.

Jumping lightly between the roof tops, Inuyasha made sure that he was far enough away from the women's house to avoid detection, before jumping lightly to the ground. He was wearing the pants that Mayu had given to him. The wool was hard, but it kept him warm not only in body, but also in spirit. He was unused to wearing shoes, so kept the pair she had given carefully hidden in the basement room he shared with his friend, Jinenji.

Inuyasha was so lost in thought that he did not pick up on the scent of the wolf fast approaching from his right.

"What are you up to hanyou?" demanded a harsh voice startling him.

He turned and stared into a pair of ice blue eyes framed by midnight black hair pulled into a high ponytail. Inuyasha's eyes widened slightly before he forced his face into a cold and blank expression. The days when he had hidden from the wolf demon were long gone. He knew that he could take Kouga in any fight, but he had two women to protect. He did not understand why he worked so hard to conceal his association with Kagome and Mayu from him. Kouga might be a cruel bastard, but he was not evil. But his beast would have none of it and almost took off his head (if that was possible) when he merely thought about it.

"What do you want, Kouga?" Inuyasha asked in a cold voice, his stance that of a bored person. He folded his arms lightly and spread his legs, ready for any attack that Kouga might throw his way.

"I want you to stop existing, hanyou." Kouga said in a deadly calm voice. "You are a disgrace to my kind. But before you do me that favor, I want you to tell me where you have been going for the past one week."

Inuyasha merely raised his eyebrow in a show of arrogant defiance and from long practice, forced his heart to beat at a normal pace. Wolf demons were very similar to dog demons in their sense of smell and hearing. He must protect Kagome at any cost.

"If I'm such a disgrace, why are you so interested in what I do or don't do?"

His question seemed to stump Kouga for a minute as he blinked and tried to think of a reason. Finally he scoffed and pushed his face into Inuyasha's in a show of dominance.

"You live in my territory mutt. Be very careful…" Kouga's voice was smooth, but Inuyasha heard the underlying threat loud and clear. He fought his instinct to pummel the arrogant wolf to the ground. He could do it too, but Kouga had a lot of nasty friends willing to play dirty to get even. It was just not worth the trouble. With his demon blood, Inuyasha was exceptionally strong, but so was the other side.

"I'll be watching you, hanyou." With that last threat, Kouga was gone in a whirlwind of sand, garbage and dry leaves. Inuyasha let out a deep breath before continuing on his way home. He had to be more careful from now onwards. If Kouga had observed his curious behavior of the past weeks, it would only be a matter of time before the wolf got curious enough to follow where his scent led. The only reason he had not already done so was because Kouga did not think that tracking down a hanyou was a dignified venture.

Inuyasha smiled grimly to himself as he thought of his hanyou status. Ever since he could remember, everyone had called him as such. At first, he had thought that it was a bad word people used to refer to orphans. It had been years later when he first came across Jinenji and his old mother that he realized that people were actually referring to his mixed blood heritage. It meant that he was half demon and half human. Thinking back to those days when he had no idea even of the kind of creature he was, Inuyasha sometimes found himself wishing that he had never found out. Ignorance had been bliss. Now he knew why both demons and humans alike condemned him. When before he had been an orphan like so many others, this new found knowledge had led him to wonder if his parents had abandoned him because of what he was. He had no recollections of either of them. But sometimes he had dreams in which he heard a soft comforting female voice sing. But soon, the dream would change to the same voice screaming in abject terror. Inuyasha hated getting those dreams. He had no idea who the voice belonged to or why he kept hearing her. But some instinct buried deep within his heart insisted that he knew the owner of that voice.

Inuyasha shook himself out of these depressing thoughts and looked up to realize that his feet had already led him to the building which he called his home. It was completely rundown and the roof had collapsed long ago. The street itself was more or less empty, many of the buildings having been abandoned long ago. Inuyasha walked around to the back of the building and shifted two huge dumpsters out of the way to reveal a gaping hole in the shape of a doorway. He stepped inside the dark doorway and pulled back the dumpsters to their previous position. He then turned and headed down the stairway that led to the basement which was where he lived.

Jinenji had accidentally found this place many years ago when they had both been kids and were being chased by bullies. The dirt and filth surrounding the building had helped to mask their scent. Eventually they had decided to live here permanently instead of just coming here to hide. Inuyasha stepped off the last stair and walked into a large dark room. He could see perfectly well in the dark, but he wondered why Jinenji had not yet woken up and started a fire for cooking breakfast. They still had some boar meat left over from a kill they had made a few days ago in the forest. Jinenji was quite good at making tasty dishes with the help of the herbs and spices he collected from the forest. Inuyasha was hopeless in cooking, so he stuck to finding the main ingredient for their meals.

"Oyi Jinenji! Get your butt up and start breakfast." Inuyasha called out to his friend. He could see him huddled underneath his meager blanket and thought he was shivering. 'What's up with him now?' he wondered and sniffed the air to make sure that Jinenji was not sick. The subtle change in his scent made Inuyasha pause and then he sighed deeply.

Like him, Jinenji was also a half demon. And like all half demons, there was one time in every lunar cycle that they lost their demon power and became completely human. Inuyasha was lucky that he lost his power during the night of every new moon. He only had to hide for the duration of the night and no one need be any the wiser. But Jinenji changed to a human on the morning after a full moon. He was stuck as a human for the entire day and it was very dangerous since if anyone found out, they could easily kill him today as his injuries would not heal without his demon blood.

And to make matters worse, Jinenji was not at all like Inuyasha. He was very tall, almost 8 feet in height with a body to match. But he had a disfigured face with huge baby blue eyes that always appeared full of tears. He also had a nasal voice and walked with a drooping hunch to his shoulders. Inuyasha, on the other hand was graced with a handsome visage and well built body. His gleaming golden eyes and sparkling silver hair made him an altogether attractive package, if people bothered to see him as a person as opposed to a hanyou. But more than these obvious physical differences, their personalities were also as different as night and day. While Inuyasha was a fighter, arrogant and always ready for a brawl, Jinenji was soft spoken, timid and often afraid even of his own shadow. And, Jinenji knew who his parents were. Although he had never met his father, who had been a demon with healing powers, he had grown up with his old mother who had always looked after him. Inuyasha had come across the two while on one of his excursions to the forest. The old crone had been dying from a nasty snake bite and Jinenji had been bawling his eyes out. He had somehow ended up comforted the big kid and promising his mother to look after him. She died soon after and they buried her beneath a huge tree. It had taken the entire night to calm down Jinenji a little bit. Not knowing what else to do, Inuyasha had coaxed him to climb the wall with no luck. Finally, he had braved the nearest gates managing to convince the guards that Jinenji was a long lost cousin. The ridiculing had started Jinenji on a fresh bout of tears and Inuyasha still cringed, thinking of the bullying that had resulted. Even though Jinenji was older and bigger than him, he had ended up being his guardian.

"Hey Jinenji." Inuyasha called in a soft voice, cursing himself for forgetting that his friend would be a human for this day. Changing to a human is not a pleasant process and Jinenji always wanted company when he changed, unlike Inuyasha who wished to be left alone that day. He had stayed at Kagome's for too long and that mangy wolf had held him up some. Still, he felt guilty for abandoning his only friend on his most vulnerable day.

"I'm sorry I'm late, okay." Inuyasha said "You're safe here, Jinenji. Look, let me make breakfast for a change. What do you say, huh? Ready to try the Inuyasha special?"

That earned him a muffled chuckle from underneath the blanket. It caused a scowl to form on his face, but it was half hearted. He knew that he was forgiven. Still wishing to make up for neglecting his friend, he started the fire in the pit they had dug in the center of the room and went to fetch the meat which was hanging by a hook on the far wall.

Soon the two friends were settling down to enjoy a hearty breakfast of roast boar and some soup that Jinenji had seemingly conjured out of thin air. He was still bundled up inside his blanket that was too small for him. How he manged to hide his entire face and half his body was a mystery to Inuyasha. He had long since given up on trying to get Jinenji out of his blanket on his human days.

They ate their food in silence. Inuyasha found it to be a little odd since normally Jinenji would be chattering at him and asking about his pretty friend. At which point Inuyasha would redden and yell at him and Jinenji would chuckle and wink at him. But it seemed Jinenji was going to be quiet for today. 'Maybe it was his human blood' Inuyasha mused to himself.

"So…" Jinenji started nervously.

'Or maybe I spoke too soon.' Inuyasha thought and put on a long suffering face. But both friends knew that it was all for show.

"I was just thinking…" Jinenji said in his soft slightly squeaky voice. "Please don't be mad at me."

Inuyasha blinked at his roommate and put down his cup of soup. Something was not right. Jinenji was getting nervous in telling him something. That did not usually mean anything good.

"What did you do this time?" Inuyasha sighed.

"I didn't do anything!" Jinenji said.

Inuyasha merely rolled his eyes and indicated to him to get on with it. Jinenji's nervousness returned. Inuyasha was unpredictable at the best of times. And his beast seemed to have found its mate, which meant this was not the best of times. Inuyasha would be feeling very protective and prickly and on edge. It had occurred to him last night that his friend probably had no idea what was happening. He was pursuing Kagome purely out of instinct. Inuyasha had practically raised himself on the streets. So much of his demon heritage was a mystery to him since no one had explained anything to him. Jinenji's heritage was very different from Inuyasha's. But he could give his friend the general idea. The only trouble was how Inuyasha would react. Knowing him, he would go into denial and make things much worse.

Jinenji grappled with his internal self while Inuyasha being the ever impatient hanyou he was, developed a tick in his left eyebrow.

"Will you spit it out?" he finally yelled.

"Did you know that you are pursuing this Kagome because she is your mate?" Jinenji's mouth yelped out without permission from his brain.

"Huh?" Inuyasha was thrown for a loop as his friend started sprouting jibberish.

Jinenji took a deep breath and asked, "Have you heard about demon mates?"

"M-mates? As in wife?" Inuyasha stammered and wondered what was wrong with Jinenji. Scum life like themselves did not get fairy tales or a family life.

"Not wife. Mate…demon mate." Jinenji sighed softly as he peered at his friend from within the safety of his blanket shield. "You haven't heard of them, have you?"

Inuyasha shook his head dumbly. Apparently demon heritage lessons were not over though he did not particularly like the sound of this one.

"For every demon, a person is born into this world who is their destined mate." Jinenji began in a preaching tone. "No one is sure about hanyous, but considering your actions of the past few days, I have to say that the same must hold true for us too."

"What do you mean m-mate?" Inuyasha couldn't help stumbling over that word.

"Like your soul mate. A wife if you wish to simplify it." Jinenji said. "But you will have an emotional connection to her and you are bound to her for life. It's the law."

"What law?" Inuyasha demanded. "I scorn all laws of all kinds." He crossed his arms in a huff as though this settled everything.

"It's the law of the universe, Yasha." Jinenji sighed in exasperation. "You can't avoid it. Kagome is your mate…"

"Wait. What?!" Inuyasha interrupted with a yell.

"It's why you can't get her out of your head or sight. It's why you work so hard to keep Kouga away from her. It's your protective instincts." Jinenji insisted calmly.

"That is a load of bull!" Inuyasha jumped up and made to storm out of their house.

"Yasha, wait!" Jinenji tried to scramble after him, but being bigger and clumsier than his quarry, he ended up landing rather heavily on his backside making the fragile structure tremble and dust rained down from the ceiling.

Inuyasha paused in his rampage to look back and make sure his moron of a friend was ok. Jinenji was sprawled on the floor and was trying to get the blanket off his face. He finally managed to stand, letting go of his blanket. That more than anything else gave Inuyasha pause. He took in the human face of the only friend he had ever made and did a double take. Jinenji's face was totally transformed. His eyes were mesmerizing and could not seem to decide whether to be blue or green. Dark hair adorned his head and his face had lost its misshapen outlook.

"You…you…" Inuyasha stammered. He had always assumed that Jinenji refused to show his human face because he was extra ugly. But apparently, he had the opposite problem.

Jinenji sighed and shook his head, "I know. But it's not important."

"But why..?" Inuyasha could not understand his friend or his logic.

"Look, I don't like others to see this face because it's not really me, alright?" Jinenji said. He even sounded different now, since his voice was no longer muffled by the blanket. "People will judge me all the more harsher, when the Sun goes down."

"But Jinenji…"

"Leave it, Yasha." Jinenji said. For the first time, Inuyasha truly felt that he was younger than his friend in fact as well as reality.

"No one will ever see my inner beauty, so I refuse to be judged by my outer one, however temporary it may be." Jinenji bent down and picked up his discarded blanket. He wrapped it around his head like a veil, but left his face exposed.

'I misjudged this guy all these years' Inuyasha thought, as he watched this new Jinenji who seemed to have a backbone of steel.

"This is not important right now." He said as he looked at Inuyasha seriously.

For a moment, Inuyasha had forgotten about his most recent demon heritage lesson. It all came rushing back in a moment. But unlike a few moments ago, he did not feel the need to run away from it. Instead, he wished to understand.

"So.." he began nervously, as he tried to order his chaotic thoughts. "So all demons marry their mates?"

"Not necessarily." Jinenji said. "They may or may not have other wives or lovers for whatever reasons. But they can never ignore the pull they feel towards their mates."

"Huh…" Inuyasha said, his head buzzing with ugly thoughts. "So I can just look the other way, right? There is no 'law' that says I gotta marry Kagome, right?" He sounded disgusted, desperate and angry all at the same time as he refused to meet his friend's gaze and glared at the wall.

Jinenji wondered what was going on in his head.

"You should not resist it." he said seriously. "My Ma told me bad things happen to you when you resist. It will be like going against your basic nature."

"Whatever." Inuyasha mumbled and walked out determined to get to his favorite tree in the forest. He felt a headache coming on and he wanted to think. Not the best combination out there and the day had just begun.

"Even if what you say is true, Kagome cannot be meant for me. She is pure and I am a filthy hanyou." He whispered so quietly only the breeze heard him as he ran.

Jinenji sighed and went back to curl up in his corner for the day. It had not been easy for him to talk about mates. He still recalled with perfect clarity his mother's pain when she used to talk about his father. She had not been his mate, just his lover. But his Pa found his mate while his mother had been pregnant with him. According to his mother, his father had tried to resist for the unborn child's sake. But he nearly killed himself in the process. In the end, his mother had told him to go. It had been a relief for him, but she had carried the grief of the separation to her grave. Jinenji wondered if Inuyasha was having similar thoughts about his parents. It was entirely possible that his demon parent had found his or her mate and abandoned the other and the child. His heart went out to his friend who had no idea even who his parents were, and which one of them had been the demon.


	6. The Festival of Hope

Mayu looked up from hanging the fancy lantern in front of the shop's main door. She could have sworn that someone had been leaning over the roof looking down at her, but when she looked up, there had not even been a shadow to see. She frowned and sent an uneasy glance towards the window beside the door. The glass had been newly washed and she could clearly see her daughter as she went about decorating the place for the Festival of Hope. Every year, the people of the kingdom celebrated this festival. They decorated their homes and built huge bonfires in public squares. There would be food and dancing, late into the night. Today was its 500th anniversary and the queen had ordered special celebrations in honor of her ancestor, the priestess Midoriko.

Mayu went inside and pitched in to help finish the decorations so that they would be in time for the starting of the huge bonfire that would be held in the main square in the circle tonight. Every circle held its own celebrations. When Queen Rin came into power, she had tried to unify the city's celebrations. But the people had been too set in their ways and had not yielded to her requests. Mayu felt that it had been a great pity; she also understood that the bad people always took advantage of such generosities. The first assassination attempt at the queen that had occurred soon after her first Festival as queen was proof enough.

"What are you thinking of, mom?"

Kagome's question jolted her out of her thoughts, which immediately dived into another direction.

"Nothing dear." She said, not wishing to worry her daughter, and understanding that she would not appreciate her concern anyway. "I was trying to choose what to make for tonight's dinner."

"Oden, of course!" Kagome laughed as she named her favorite dish. Mayu had to laugh with her.

"Alright, alright!" Mayu said, shaking her head at her daughter "Just like your father…"

Kagome beamed when she heard that. She loved being told that she was exactly like her father in many ways.

"I better start preparing the dish now itself, if we are to go see the bonfire at sun down." Mayu said. "Can you finish decorating by yourself, dear?"

"Of course!" Kagome smiled.

Mayu smiled at her daughter's enthusiasm. In many ways, she was still a child even though she was 18 summers old. She sighed as she thought of her dead husband. She wondered how long she could protect Kagome. She had grown into a beautiful woman and many a leering man had eyed her with greed. Many of the intruders in their home had been after Kagome. Of late, no one had bothered them. But that shadow Mayu thought she had seen made her uneasy. It was not the first time she had spotted it in the past couple of days. She wished she had someone to turn to, to protect her daughter.

'That had been a close call with Mayu.' Inuyasha thought as he lay down on top of the roof and closed his eyes, remembering the pain of the past two weeks. Ever since his talk with Jinenji, Inuyasha had been troubled. He had often wondered if he had been abandoned because he was a hanyou. Now the truth seemed uglier than before. Apparently, he had been tossed aside because of this mate thing. On top of that, he himself had now found a mate. Inuyasha was still not sure what to think of that. In his initial anger and confusion, he had tried to purposefully stay away from Kagome. It had worked for about a week. The effort had left him exhausted and in pain. Yet, he had been unwilling to let go of his stubbornness. He did not know what he was trying to defeat, his past or his possible future, which seemed equally horrifying and tempting, though he would be hard pressed to explain why. All he had been able to tell Jinenji was that he did not ever want to repeat what his parents had done.

"It won't be like that, you idiot! She is your mate!" Jinenji had yelled at him.

"Why…have me? So…pure. Don't …want..abandon…" Inuyasha had rasped out between the pain and agony his beast was putting him through.

He had hardly made sense to himself, but Jinenji had understood anyway.

"It won't be like that, Yasha…" he had pleaded. "Please… you can't die… you are my only friend." He had finally sobbed out.

That had been the turning point which had brought him back to his senses. He had been weak, but the moment he decided to go back to Kagome, his beast settled down, the pain began to subside and he felt a little less dizzy.

"Help me… Kagome…" Inuyasha had croaked out to Jinenji.

And poor, frightened Jinenji had done the bravest thing in his life. That night, he had dragged Inuyasha to the roof top of Kagome's building. Jinenji had collapsed on the roof, but for Inuyasha, it was like breathing pure air for the first time. It had taken nearly 3 days for his strength to come back, after constant care from Jinenji and by never leaving Kagome's building.

Inuyasha had thought a lot in those three days. He decided he could never abandon Kagome, but she need not know about his vigil, mate or no. She deserved a better life than being the mate of a filthy hanyou. And so he had gone back to his pattern of guarding her house at night and leaving in the morning. But sometimes, he could not help coming back during the day, just to listen to her and to try and catch a glimpse of her face.

Inuyasha's ears twitched as a window was opened on the floor just below the roof. He knew that it was Kagome's room and his heart started to beat faster. His beast was excited and jumpy. It took all of his will power not to jump from the roof and into the bedroom, to see her. Every passing day, it became more and more difficult to maintain the limits he had set for himself. He gritted his teeth and forced his body to stay still as the Sun travelled across the sky.

"Your Majesty" Lord Miroku bowed before the queen as she sat on her throne, adorned in a resplendent orange kimono with a beautiful green pattern, a delicate tiara on her brow.

"Rise, Lord Miroku" Rin said formally.

The royal librarian had just returned from the monastery in the mountains, where he had spent the past month gathering information about the priestess Midoriko. The courtiers watched with interest. Rin wondered if she was imagining the hostile feeling in the throne room. There had never been any love lost between the queen and most of her courtiers. But this hostility somehow transcended the usual feeling she got. It somehow felt darker…almost evil.

It had been given out that Kagura had accompanied Miroku for his research. Ever since their departure, Rin had felt a growing disquiet in her heart. The scowl that Sesshomaru had given her, when she mentioned it to him privately, had been enough to confirm that he had felt it too. That had not helped in the least. Now Miroku was back, but Kagura was not. Rin felt the courtiers eye her mockingly, taunting her silently for an explanation. But her face remained impassive. After all, she had trained her poker face under the Ice Prince himself.

"What news, my lord?" she asked Miroku.

She observed the once charming librarian as he presented her with a beautiful scroll. Miroku seemed to have lost weight and there was a hardness in his eyes. Although his expression was neutral, there was a grim set to his lips. To the outside world, he had just returned from a simple research mission. But from the letters she had exchanged with Kagura over the past month, she knew that the librarian had continued to try and find more information regarding the prophecy. Looking at him now simply increased the nameless disquiet in her heart. For a moment, she felt a dark shadow trying to consume her. The next second, it was gone. She looked around at the assembled courtiers. No one seemed to have noticed anything. She would have dismissed it as her imagination had she not seen the ghost of a scowl on Sesshomaru's face.

The queen opened the ceremonious scroll that Miroku had given her. It was merely a courtesy of course. The completed work had been handed over to her secretary beforehand. This scroll was like the title of the collection, presented to observe the formalities.

"I see that you have been successful in your mission." Rin stated as she handed the scroll to the prime minister, Kaede.

"Indeed, my lady." Miroku said. "My mentor was able to guide me to many ancient scrolls and even helped in translating many of them. I can say with complete confidence that this is a complete study on the life of Midoriko and is truly one of a kind."

"Very good, my lord." The queen said. "You shall be amply rewarded for your troubles."

Miroku bowed and Rin indicated that he may leave.

"Where is the seer, Kagura?"

It was Lord Manten, Hiten's brother. A thunder demon with cannibalistic tendencies, it was a widely known fact that he said and did whatever his elder brother wanted. Manten's position in court was tolerated because everyone was too scared to oppose Hiten, who could be quite ruthless especially when it came to protecting his brother.

Now Manten leered at the queen and his eyes gleamed at her in mockery. His demeanor made Sesshomaru see red, literally. If not for years of practice, he would have lost control of his enraged demon, who did not like other males leering at what was essentially his. Oblivious to his peril, Manten continued to watch the queen.

"Kagura will be staying on at the monastery for a while longer." Rin returned coolly. "She has found an old witch to train under."

A murmur went through the courtiers as they heard this. But Rin recognized the mockery in his eyes even though Manten bowed to her in respect.

A distant gong sounded, indicating high noon. Rin sighed softly as the court dispersed and she had two hours of peace. She absolutely hated dealing with these narrow minded fools. She rose and beckoned Miroku and Sesshomaru to follow her to her private quarters. She did not notice Lord Hiten watch them. The demon was startled out of his brooding when he felt the cold eyes of the priestess Kikyou on him.

"Koharu, summon the Council here, but it must be done quietly." Rin said to her secretary as she got comfortable in the armchair before the fire in her private sitting room.

"Wait." Miroku stepped forward, blocking the secretary from leaving.

Rin raised a well shaped eyebrow at him.

"My lady, please…" Miroku began and looked nervously at the General lounging against the mantelpiece. He had always been nervous around Sesshomaru.

"I would rather not talk to all the Council just now." Miroku said.

Sesshomaru gave him an impassive look and made to leave.

"Stay." Rin said

It was Sesshomaru's turn to raise his eyebrow at her. Rin merely gave him a dead panned look and turned to Miroku.

"Speak your mind, Lord Miroku. Make sure we are not disturbed, Koharu."

"As you wish, my lady" Koharu murmured as she bowed and left, closing the door behind her.

Miroku was reminded of that fateful day a month ago, when he and Kagura had waited in this very room to speak with the queen.

"What have you found out, Miroku?" Rin asked. "I am aware that your true research subject was not my ancestor. Speak freely."

Miroku stared at her for a moment before remembering her relationship with Kagura. He supposed that made things easier. He took a deep breath and began, as Sesshomaru listened with a bored look on his face although the other two people in the room where not fooled by that.

"The prophecy I found had been foremost on my mind as we journeyed to the mountains." Miroku said. "As soon as I was able, I spoke with my master Mushin about it. He too shared my concerns and fears. Under his counsel, I undertook a dangerous journey deep into the mountains, where an old hermit with much knowledge is supposed to live. It took me 7 days before I found his home."

Miroku paused and looked at the dog demon. "Perhaps you know of this hermit, Lord Sesshomaru. He is actually a demon, a sword smith as well as a lore master."

"Totosai." Sesshomaru said, and his expression would have frozen an army.

"Do you know of this demon hermit, Sesshomaru?" Rin asked.

Sesshomaru nodded grimly and said, "Oh yes, I know him." He refused to say anything else, but indicated to Miroku to continue.

The latter sighed and continued, "Anyway, Totosai seemed a little insane to me. But he had seen much in his long life. He said that he personally knew Midoriko and had made her famous bow for her."

"What? That must mean that he is over 500 years old!" Rin exclaimed.

"He is." Sesshomaru said. "All demons have a long lifespan."

"Oh…" Rin stored away that information for later. "And what of the prophecy?"

"He knew who Xahar was." Miroku said.

Sesshomaru had gone back to looking bored, but Rin sat forward with interest.

"Xahar was Midoriko's friend, one who knew her quite intimately." Miroku said "Totosai said that she was not a seer, but not all prophecies were made by seers anyway."

"And what of the prophecy itself?" Rin asked.

Here, Miroku hesitated.

"What is it, Monk?" Sesshomaru demanded suddenly, sensing his discomfort.

Miroku rubbed his face in agitation and took a calming breath.

"My lady," he said "According to Totosai, your ancestor Midoriko was married twice and had children from both her husbands, an older daughter and a son."

Dead silence met his words. Miroku stared at the carpet and continued in a quiet voice.

"Midoriko's first husband was killed before the war. Apparently, he was killed by some of the bad demons from the East. It seems that is why Midoriko began her campaign to end the war. She later fell in love with a prince from one of the human royal families that had allied with her. At the time of her famous battle, her young son was only 2 years old. After her death, her two children were raised by her second husband's family. But they were not fond of her daughter from her first marriage. The prince was the only reason they tolerated her. After his death, the girl disappeared. No one knows what happened to her. Totosai felt that the lost keeper of the prophecy might be a descendant of that girl, considering that the descendants of Midoriko became the Keepers and half of that line is now lost."

"Assuming she lived long enough to sire a child." Sesshomaru said.

He looked at Rin who seemed to have become frozen. He was glad that Miroku suggested against summoning the Council. He did not want anyone else to get hold of this knowledge. It could endanger not only Rin's position as Queen, but also her very life. He went over to Rin and touched her lightly on the shoulder. She seemed to come out of a trance. She caught his hand in her own as he made to withdraw. Rin squeezed his hand, as though confirming that he was there with her. Sesshomaru wanted to scoop her up in his arms and take her far away from all this political nonsense. He settled for calling out to her softly, "Rin."

Hearing him say her name was so rare that Rin was reminded of her childhood. She felt like smiling, although her eyes filled up with tears. She had sacrificed so much when she ascended the throne, hardly knowing who was friend and who was foe. Despite all her trials, Rin found satisfaction in knowing that she was helping her people. Now it seemed that she might not even be the true Queen. What a joke her life has been!

Seeing the queen breakdown, Miroku was reminded of how much of a burden she carried on her young shoulders. His heart went out to her and he wished that he could do something, anything to ease her heart.

"My lady, I pledge my loyalty to you." Miroku said, as he went down on one knee before his queen. "I beg you to not trouble your heart with this knowledge. Let us try to find this lost keeper first. We will worry about the technicalities later."

"The Monk is right." Sesshomaru said. His hand had gone numb from the way Rin was squeezing it. He also had to remain bent since she was seated. But Sesshomaru was hardly aware of any of this. His mate was unhappy and that made his beast unhappy. But for the first time, he did not resist his instincts when it came to Rin. He wanted to comfort her and bring the mischievous smile back to her face.

"For now, you will rest and leave this matter to me." He decreed in his icy tone. "Monk, this should not go beyond this room."

"Of course, General." Miroku said as he got up and bowed to Rin before leaving for his own office. He had planned to go back home, but after seeing the strong queen reduced to tears, he decided to hang around the palace, just in case she needed him.

Once Miroku had left, Sesshomaru did what he had wanted to do for a long time. He scooped up Rin in his arms and sat in the chair himself, and placed her on his lap. Rin immediately curled up like a cat and settled her head beneath his chin and snuggled. Suddenly it seemed as if all her cares and worries had melted away. Sesshomaru had never been so openly affectionate with her. Rin wondered if she should mention her theory regarding their relationship, but decided she wanted to enjoy this moment more. Both of them sat in silence, content to take comfort in each other's presence.

After a while, Rin spoke.

"Sesshomaru?"

"Hn."

Hearing his characteristic response made her smile.

"Will you do something for me?" she asked.

"You know that I am yours to command."

That made Rin scowl as she thought of a lot of irritating commands to decree to him.

"Not as a General to his queen." She said "As a friend to another friend. We are friends, right?"

Sesshomaru sighed and rested his cheek against her hair and said, "Rin."

And she smiled in content, knowing that her request would be carried out, from a friend to a friend.

The shadows danced across Kagome's room as she got ready for the bonfire. The Sun had almost set, lighting up the city in a swath of reddish orange glow. She was wearing her best dress, which had been a gift from her mother on her 15th birthday, now three years past. She hardly ever wore it except on important days. She sighed a bit as she thought about the last bit of hem that she had let down, in order to accommodate her growing height. The dress now reached up to her ankles, showing the brown boots that she had on. It did not match the dress per se, but it was her best shoes. The dress itself was a deep green color and the material hugged her body. The neck was heart shaped and cut low, exposing her graceful neck and giving a hint of cleavage. The sleeves were long and fit her shapely arms. Mayu had stitched it in such a way that it could be altered as Kagome grew. This was a good thing since her body had definitely filled out this year.

Kagome looked at herself in the small mirror in her room. A beautiful young woman looked back at her. For a moment, the shabby clothes dipped her spirits. But, then she thought of Inuyasha, how he did not even have any shoes to wear. She had been thinking a lot about the strange young man she had met on that night, nearly a month ago. She hoped to run into him at the festival tonight. Everyone came to these things and she hoped she would finally get to know him, perhaps even dance with him. A light blush rose to her cheeks as she thought of being encased in his strong arms. She had not seen him stand up, but he had looked quite tall. And all that gorgeous hair… it almost made her jealous. Kagome sighed once again, but there was a simple smile adorning her face now. She skipped out of her room and into shop below, anxious to leave.

Mayu came down the steps slowly and watched Kagome sway to a simple tune that she was humming softly, while she stood in front of the glass window watching the people drift towards the town square. The front door suddenly burst open and Kagome whirled around, only to be almost knocked over by her three very enthusiastic friends, Ayumi, Eri and Yuka. The girls had all grown up together and even though Kagome felt that they were sometimes very silly, she loved them all very dearly. Mayu shook her head fondly as all 4 began to chatter about the upcoming dance around the bonfire. She went to the ledge under the window and lighted the single lamp they had. The rich people decorated their houses with beautiful lamps during the festival. This being the First Circle, not many would be found. But Mayu was determined to burn one every year. The lamp was actually a family heirloom, handed down from her great grandmother.

"Shall we go, girls?" Mayu asked.

"Oh Mama!" Kagome exclaimed. "I didn't see you come down!"

Mayu simply smiled and shepherded all of them outside. All of them had simple but warm cloaks thrown over their shoulders, since the night was bound to get chilly soon. Mayu shooed the girls to go ahead while she locked up and followed. The rundown street looked shabbier than ever, with sparse decorations here and there. Waiting at the corner was a few of the women who lived nearby. Mayu fell into step with them, keeping an eye on Kagome and her friends who walked a little ahead of the older women. Unbeknownst to them all, a silver haired hanyou was following them along the roof tops.

After arranging with Jinenji to meet up at the town square, Inuyasha followed Kagome. She looked beautiful in her green dress.

'Delicious' His demon rumbled.

'Shut up, you!' Inuyasha barked at his beast as he tried not to lose his quarry in the crowd below. Very soon, he was forced to jump down and follow them along the street. Many a person scowled at him and moved away, seeing that he was a hanyou. But for the first time in his life, this did not bother Inuyasha. He was wearing a coat, a size too large for him. He did not like to put up the hood since this meant that his ears would get squashed. He made sure to keep with the crowd, in case Mayu or Kagome spotted him, although he was pretty sure that neither would recognize him.

"So Kagome…" Ayumi began "Who is it?"

Kagome blinked at her friend in confusion. She turned to the others for an explanation, but Eri and Yuka had a strange teasing glint in their eyes.

"Who is who?" Kagome asked, a little disturbed by her friends' apparent descent into insanity.

"The boy you dressed up for." Yuka replied promptly.

"W-What boy?" Kagome asked a little nervously, pink dusting her cheeks.

Break-ins were common in the First Circle and Kagome often told her friends whenever they experienced one. But she had never told them about Inuyasha. She did not want to share even his memory with anyone else. Now she wondered if her crazy friends were psychic as well.

"Don't play dumb, Kagome." Eri admonished, shaking a finger in front of her face. "You usually just put on a dress. But today, you seem to have gone to a lot of trouble to look pretty."

"No I haven't!" Kagome said, even though she had in fact raided Mayu's old make up box while getting ready. But she did not want to tell her friends that she was hoping to run into Inuyasha, since she would first have to tell them who he was and she did not want to do that either.

And so the interrogation continued all the way to the town square.

The town square had once held a beautiful fountain. Now it was just a huge bowl of dull stone, with no water and not even a hint of what might have been the center piece. The people now used this fountain to build the bonfire. As Kagome and her friends reached the square, they saw a huge pile of wood, stacked ready to be lighted at sundown. Seeing the fountain used like this always upset Kagome, but she had learned to hide it as the years passed. Now she turned her back on the fountain and continued chatting with her friends. She would only turn back, once the bonfire was lit and she need not see the dilapidated remains of the once beautiful fountain.

A flash of silver caught her eye and Kagome looked up to see a young man, a demon by the looks of him, with flowing silver hair. He wore shabby clothes like everyone else around. What caught her attention was the twitching white puppy ears peeking out from the top of his head. She had an insane desire to rub them between her fingers. The demon was certainly handsome, but what spiked her curiosity was that, she could had sworn that he was looking at her a moment before. As she watched him discreetly, she saw him move to the shadows and speak with a hulking shape. It seemed he had a huge demon friend. Kagome had seen many demons. The city was a mix of many races and unlike many humans, she did not have any prejudice against demons.

"What are you looking at, Kagome?" Ayumi asked.

"Huh? Oh… uh…nothing." Kagome said, having forgotten her friends' presence. "I was just looking for my mother."

But as the friends continued to chat, the face of the silver haired demon did not leave Kagome's mind. She had a strange feeling that she knew him from somewhere, although she was certain that she had never seen him before in her entire life. Features like his, especially the puppy ears, were kind of hard to forget.

"Kagome?"

She turned to see her mother beckon to her from the shade of a building. The sun had set and the ceremony was about to begin. Kagome excused herself and went to her mother.

"Why are you standing in the dark, Mama?" Kagome asked as she reached her mother's side. "The bonfire is about to be lit."

Mayu said nothing, but looked around with a grim look.

"Mama?" Kagome lightly touched her mother's hands and was surprised to feel them tremble.

"Kagome…" Mayu whispered "Can you not feel it? The cold wind?"

"Huh?" Kagome said "Mama, its after sundown and winter is almost here. Of course there is a cold wind."

Mayu shook her head slightly. "No child. This is not the weather. Something bad is going to happen. Stay close to me."

So saying, Mayu pulled herself and Kagome further back into the side of the building.

"Maybe we should go home." She muttered to herself.

Mayu had been feeling uneasy all day. And as she neared the town square, the feeling had only become worse. She did not understand why, but a nameless fear gripped her heart. She thought about going back home with Kagome. But the streets would be empty now. What if someone attacked them? Seeing the safety in numbers, she decided to stay in the square with the other people. Meanwhile, Kagome was becoming very worried about her mother. She did not understand what Mayu was muttering. She suddenly felt quite young and helpless. She did not know what to do.

"Do you feel it, Jinenji?" Inuyasha asked. They were hidden between two buildings. They did not have a clear view of the bonfire, but neither of them was here to watch that anyway. Inuyasha kept his eyes trained on Kagome and Mayu. He wondered why they were huddled by the building, instead of up front like the other people. In fact, he was pretty sure that the both of them were in the front a short while ago. He looked up and saw the entire city wrapped in darkness, not even a lamp winked anywhere. The first bonfire would be lit at the palace. Only after that would it be lit at the town squares in each Circle. If he squinted, he could make out the tallest towers of the palace rising against the sky.

"Feel what?" Jinenji asked.

"The silence."

It was rather quiet, except for a howling wind that seemed to be picking up. The people were also murmuring in low voices now. The happy chatter and laughter were long gone. Everyone was looking about uneasily. Inuyasha looked up and saw a black mass of angry clouds gather across the sky. The entire city seemed to be swallowed up in darkness.

"Is it going to rain?" Jinenji wondered.

"No." Inuyasha said quietly "Something is about to happen. I feel it in my bones." After all, his instincts were yet to fail him. His beast was restless, demanding he protect Kagome. He moved out of the mouth of the alleyway were they had been waiting and slowly began to walk closer to Kagome and Mayu. It was a good thing that they were standing at the edge of the crowd. Even though he did not like it, he decided to put up his hood, so that if they did catch a glimpse of his face, they would not be frightened.

"Yasha!" Jinenji whisper yelled at his friend who was moving out into the open. He did not like crowds and did not want to follow. Inuyasha looked back and gestured for him to stay as he reached near Kagome. The two women were only a few paces ahead of him. He turned back and saw Jinenji's worried face peek out from the alleyway. His heart skipped a beat and his beast roared. Following an ancient instinct, Inuyasha leapt in front and pushed down Kagome and Mayu to the ground just as an explosion shook the earth.


	7. Escape

"What news, Jaken?" Sesshomaru asked his most faithful servant.

After leaving Rin to get ready for the celebrations, Sesshomaru had gone to his private office in the palace. Word had reached him that his servant, Jaken had returned. The growing disquiet in his heart had compelled Sesshomaru to send Jaken out to spy out the land and learn what he could. There had been no word from his servant for the past one month, but Sesshomaru was not worried. Jaken might be a weak toad demon, but he was quite proficient in magic and an expert at making people reveal secrets.

"My lord." Jaken bowed deeply. He was quite tiny and hardly reached up to Seshomaru's knees. But he made up for it by carrying a tall staff with the head of a man and a woman carved on top. It was not just for decoration though. This staff was quite powerful and was given to him by the great Inutaisho, Seshomaru's father, when he was under his service. Upon his death, he had pledged himself to the service of his only son.

The disquiet in Sesshomaru's heart increased as he took in Jaken's appearance. He looked rather worse for the wear, a mere shell of his earlier self. There was nothing wrong with him physically, but Sesshomaru sensed that he had almost depleted his strength, by trying to reach the palace. It was as if something had reached in and drained him internally. He was hanging on to his staff for support and one discreet sniff of his scent told Sesshomaru that his servant did not have long to live. Jaken himself was aware of this.

"My lord, I do not have much time left." He said in a labored voice. "I travelled far and wide in search of any enemy. I even went to the borders of the accursed land." He was affected by a racking cough as he referred to the land to the east of the Crystal Kingdom, which had been the land of the Dark King Onigumo. Jaken continued after a pause.

"Something is not right my lord. Dark things are stirring there. Monsters and demons of legend." His voice trembled. "I was captured by foul creatures. It took all of my strength to escape and come back here." Jaken wobbled and would have fallen if Sesshomaru had not caught him. He gripped his servant tightly and willed him to hang on until he told the complete story. In his mind, he started organizing a team of his best warriors to suppress this new threat.

Jaken gripped his master's sleeve as he dragged up the strength to warn him of the danger. "Spies…in the palace…the queen…" so saying he collapsed on the floor, shivering.

For the first time, Sesshomaru knew fear… fear for his mate, the queen. For a moment he seemed frozen and a thought whispered across his mind, 'The Monk and the Seer were right… now we are too late.' His eyes bled red as he ran to the back of his office and pushed aside a painting of the old king. A secret passage was revealed, which would take him directly to the corridor in front of Rin's room. He had often used this passage while Rin was a child trying to escape from her masters. Now Sesshomaru dashed along the dark passage, his heart thumping in fear. If not for his demonic speed, he would never have made it in time.

Rin adjusted her kimono and plastered a fake smile on her face. After the news that Miroku had brought, she felt like curling up in bed and crying. Having Sesshomaru comfort her had eased her mind a little. But her heart was heavy as she stepped out of the room and went towards the huge balcony overlooking the palace courtyard. The last of the sun's rays had gone down and it was time to start the bonfire. Her loyal assistant, Koharu followed behind her. The balcony was at the end of the long corridor in front of her room. Just before the balcony was a huge staircase on the left, leading to the halls below. As Rin was about to reach the balcony, she heard a familiar voice yell, "Rin, get down!"

The fear evident in the voice froze Rin for a second. The next moment, something slammed into her from behind taking her down just as a barrage of arrows whizzed over her head.

Rin was frightened. Sesshomaru was holding her down. She looked to the right and saw Koharu lying motionless beside her, several arrows embedded deep in her body. Rin could not bear to look and she turned to the front. She saw someone wearing red robes walk into her line of vision, followed by a dozen men who all looked like her own soldiers. Rin's mind was a blank as she heard a huge explosion rock the very foundations of her home.

"You missed!" exclaimed a familiar voice. "I told you we should have gotten the dog on our side!"

Sesshomaru slowly got up and raised Rin to her feet. He pushed her behind him and turned to the newcomers. Somehow, he was not surprised to see who they were. His eyes were completely red now, his fangs elongated and his claws sharp. His facial markings were jagged, showing how close his demon was to the surface. It would not take much for him to convert to his true form.

"Oh but dogs are eternally faithful creatures." Murmured Lady Kikyo, dressed in red robes as she held an arrow notched straight at the enraged Sesshomaru. Hiten stood behind her, his sword drawn and dripping blood, along with his brother Manten and a dozen of the elite soldiers of the Crown's Guard. They who were supposed to protect the queen had betrayed her.

Miroku was jostled awake by a loud explosion. He had been exhausted from his trip and had only thought to rest his head on the desk, but fell asleep instead. For a moment, he looked around the darkened room wondering about the loud noise he had heard. It took him a few moments to realize that it was well past the time to light the palace bonfire. But from the view outside his window, the entire city seemed to have been plunged in darkness. But there was a strange orange glow which he could not directly see. Frowning, Miroku got up from his chair and walked to the window. He pushed aside the curtains and yawned. But the next minute he was wide awake, fatigue forgotten. The lowest levels of the city seemed to be on fire and the palace courtyard just below was littered with dead bodies. He could hear the clang of steel from various parts of the castle.

'A coupe?' He thought, bemusedly. 'Are we under attack? But how…' his thoughts ground to a halt as his senses came brutally awake. The palace was under attack. Without Kagura and her power to predict the future, it was no wonder that they had missed it. But how had so many of the enemy got past the guards and Sesshomaru?

'Unless…' Miroku did not like where his thoughts were headed. His heart beat painfully as he contemplated what lay ahead of him. He was a proficient swordsman, but he had never been in any battle, being raised by monks and generally being more interested in scrolls and women.

'Women…Oh God! The queen!'

Miroku stumbled back to his desk in his haste. He threw open a tall cupboard to the side and brought out a tall thin staff with rings hanging from the top. It jingled as he brought it out. He had not used this staff in years. He had trained with it during his apprenticeship to the monk Mushin. The staff was embedded with holy power and could be used to deal with humans and demons alike. Miroku gripped it in his hand and took a deep breath. He grabbed some sacred sutras from the cupboard and opened his door and peeked out carefully. Seeing the place was empty, he slowly snuck out and headed towards the queen's quarters.

"Are you surprised, Your Majesty?" Manten mocked at the pale faced Rin. She still had not uttered a word and seemed to be in shock. Her eyes were wide and she was clutching Sesshomaru's arm quite painfully. She was scared out of her wits. But if the dog demon had been in any condition to concentrate, he would have heard her heart slow its pace, he would have smelt the spike in her anger at the traitors. Thankfully, other demons' senses were not as sharp as a dog demon's, so Manten continued to boast and mock her.

'Kill!' This was the only coherent thought in Sesshomaru's brain. His beast had broken his control while he quickly tried to seek out a way for him to get Rin away from here.

'Nobody harms our mate!' For once, Sesshomaru was in complete accord with his beast. If only he could manage some sort of diversion, his demonic speed would ensure Rin's safety as he carried her back through the secret passage. He began to think furiously on how to cause a diversion, while he listened with half an ear to the traitors and his beast became more and more enraged.

"With your precious seer out of the way, it was child's play, my queen." Lord Hiten said "After all, you are not much liked in the palace." He smiled in a helpless manner, while his eyes mocked her.

Rin's eyes darted to the priestess Kikyo. She alone remained calm, her icy expression unruffled.

"And it seems, even our worthy priestess is not immune to the allure of power." Hiten said as he watched Rin.

The thunder demons laughed, seeing the frightened expression on Rin's face. The guards remained stony faced and silent. Suddenly, a dark shadow seemed to reach into the room. For a moment, Rin felt dizzy and she felt as if someone had reached in and clutched her brain. A wince escaped her as Sesshomaru growled and took a protective stance in front of her. The shadows seemed to melt together and separate, leaving behind a man with red eyes and flowing dark hair. He seemed to be dressed for war, with armor and a sword at his side. His pale face was quite angelic, but the cruel lilt to his eyes and the sneer on his lips gave away his intentions.

Rin's heart faltered as she looked at the newcomer. She knew that this was her true enemy and the traitors were only puppets. The pure evil emanating from the man was astounding. In fact, that is how she realized that she was not looking at an ordinary man, but at a demon. Her heart began to pound hard as she recalled with perfect clarity, the ominous prophecy that Miroku had found all those weeks ago.

'We could never have stopped this.' Rin thought 'When the prophecy was found, it had already been too late.'

"So this is the infamous queen of the Crystal Kingdom" the demon said, in a voice which was as deadly as it was soft. He seemed to be a centre of darkness affecting everyone around him. Even his own minions were not spared. Rin saw Manten shiver and Hiten make a pained face as they moved away from him. Kikyo merely curled her lips and looked away. Rin wondered if this meant she was even more cruel than this demon.

Rin could not understand Kikyo's involvement in this. The others yes, but not the priestess who seemed the epitome of selflessness.

"This is Lord Naraku." Kikyo said as she gestured to the newcomer.

"Indeed." Naraku inclined his head towards her in a mock salutation.

'There is something going on with those two' Rin thought.

"You are but a little girl, my dear." Naraku said "You should leave important things like ruling a kingdom to grown-ups. And do try to control the rabid dog." He curled his lips at the snarling Sesshomaru.

Naraku turned to Kikyo and said, "Please do the honors, priestess" he gestured to the queen.

Rin stiffened and Sesshomaru growled a warning.

Kikyo sighed in impatience and said, "All this melodrama!" She shook her head at Naraku.

"I waited 500 years for this day, priestess. Of course there will be some melodrama." Naraku told her with a cruel smile as his dark hair flowed behind him in a ghostly wind.

Kikyo sighed again and turned to Rin, "We only want the Jewel. The one you always carry around on your neck."

Rin gasped. She could not help it. The location of the Jewel was supposed to be known only to the Keeper.

"Really, Rin." Kikyo said. "After all that has happened, this is what shocks you? Surely, you realize that I am a quite powerful priestess. Do not insult me by thinking that I cannot find the hiding place thought of by a 14 year old girl! I have always known where you kept it. Now hand it over, and no one else needs to die."

"No!" Rin cried emphatically as she hung on to Sesshomaru "It does not belong to you!"

"Oh you think not?" Naraku sneered at her "It will take too long to go into the reasons of why the Jewel does, in fact, belong to me. What I can do, however, is give you an incentive to part with it without any of us being shredded by your dog."

So saying, Naraku gestured to the guards. They soon dragged the semi conscious prime minister towards the queen.

"Kaede! No!" Rin's eyes filled with tears as she took in the almost dead form of the woman who had often stood in for her dead mother.

Kaede seemed to have put up a good fight before surrendering. Her left arm was twisted at an unnatural angle and her face was completely bloody. One of her eyes was swollen and shut. The numerous cuts over her body were bleeding into the carpet.

Kikyo put away her bow and took out a short knife. She pushed the point into Kaede's neck causing one more wound that began to bleed.

"No! Don't! Please…" Rin was sobbing now.

"You can stop anything from happening to her, Rin" Kikyo said calmly. "Just hand over the Jewel. I would have taken it from you, but the General was too quick for me." She admitted grudgingly.

Rin trembled. She knew that they were all going to die whether she gave up the Jewel or not. She saw it in Naraku's eyes. The only reason she was still alive was Sesshomaru, but even he would fall if all of these people attacked at once. Her heart despaired over what to do. She could not bear it if she had to watch Sesshomaru die. That was when she noticed a shadow at the end of the corridor, near the top of the stairs. Recognizing who it was, Rin found her will and strength once again, although she kept it hidden from her enemies. She reached up inside her kimono and drew out a long pale gold chain from around her neck. Attached to the end was a glowing pink jewel, the size of a marble. She lifted the chain over her head and threw it and the Jewel to Kikyo, who caught it deftly. For the first time, a triumphant gleam came into her eyes.

"At last!" Naraku said and moved to her side and reached for the Jewel. That was when all hell broke loose.

A crackling explosion shook the corridor and there was a high pitched wail. All the guards were down and even Naraku was twitching a bit although he was still standing. Hiten seemed to have been knocked unconscious, but Manten had been completely purified by the holy sutras cast at him. Kikyo was unharmed only due to her quick reaction. She had erected a shield which protected her from the attack.

"What the hell…!" Naraku snarled. He hated getting his plans interrupted.

"Miroku." Kikyou said grimly.

It had taken a lot of sneaking, but Miroku had finally reached the stairs leading to the queen's private quarters. Everything seemed eerily quiet as he softly climbed the steps. He had reached the landing on top in time to hear Kikyo introduce Naraku. What he saw almost froze his heart. But apparently, Sesshomaru was still loyal to Rin. He felt sorry for doubting him now. He waited for the perfect opportunity to strike and got ready some of the holy sutras that he had stashed on his person. He managed to catch Sesshomaru's eye as Rin handed over the Jewel. The demon blinked at him and Miroku took that as a yes to his unspoken question. And he threw the sacred sutras from behind the enemy.

The sutras were most effective against demons while the human guards simply got knocked unconscious. Naraku was too dark and evil to be affected by such a feeble attack. It merely irritated him. He turned his raging blood-red eyes to Miroku, but found himself battling the dog demon instead. Despite being a powerful demon himself, Sesshomaru was hard pressed to hold his own against Naraku. He was simply too powerful and too ancient to be defeated by one person alone. Meanwhile Miroku was engaged in battle with Kikyo. The lady was surprised to find the meek librarian an even match, even though her expression never betrayed her thoughts.

"Kaede!" Rin cried as she rushed to the prime minister's side. She dragged the old woman to the side of the corridor which really was not built to accommodate any battles. Rin looked about helplessly as she thought of how to help the prime minister.

"Rin, child, listen to me." Kaede was apparently not as unconscious as everyone believed. Rin yelped and turned back to her as she lay propped up on the wall. Rin crouched next to her and asked, "Are you alright? Sorry.. silly question… " she wrung her hands in her agitation. Kaede caught them in her own.

"Please Kaede," Rin begged, tears streaming down her face as her hair became undone from its elegant style. "Tell me how to help you."

"Save yourself, Rin." Kaede rasped out. "That is how you can help me."

"No! I won't…" she began.

"Rin, listen to me!" Kaede said as the two battles continued around them. "You took an oath when you ascended the throne. You have a duty to the people. You must help them."

"But…"

"Do you think that Naraku is attacking only the castle?" Kaede interrupted. "The entire kingdom is being attacked, Rin. The Fountain City is burning!"

Rin was speechless. It had never occurred to her that the attack would be carried out against the people also.

"Rin," Kaede said "Naraku is evil… ancient evil. How or why, I do not know. But you must purge this world of him, lest we all descend into a second darkness."

"The prophecy…" Rin began.

Kaede nodded her head. "Indeed." She sighed. "Poor Kagura. It is indeed coming to pass, I believe."

"But you are wounded! Let me help you." Rin said

"Haven't you been listening? I am not important!" Kaede said "You must get out of here. There is a secret passage from the library that leads below the dungeons and will take you outside the city. You must go and gather allies and information. Naraku must be stopped!"

"What passage?" Rin looked bewildered.

"I am old, child." Kaede sighed in weariness "I know many things. But Miroku can find this passage. Tell him to look for the lady."

"Huh?" Rin was scared and confused. "But the battle…" she trailed off, seeing that Kaede had lost consciousness, this time for real. A blast and a cackling laugh had her turning to see Naraku throw Sesshomaru away from him.

"No!" She screamed and drew her knife Nightshade which she always carried, but Naraku was too quick for her. Miroku had disarmed Kikyo and was about to snatch the Jewel which she had hung about her neck when suddenly he was pushed aside by Naraku. The demon snatched the Jewel and disappeared in an ugly purple haze. Kikyo screamed in rage and made to follow him, but Miroku tripped her. She fell and hit her head, falling unconscious.

Rin rushed over to Sesshomaru. But she need not have worried. He was not hurt, merely irritated that his opponent got away.

"Rin." His beast calmed a little, seeing that Rin was unhurt. But she was by no means out of danger. The palace was no longer under the control of the Crown. He had to get her out of here quickly.

"We must leave." Sesshomaru said. His eyes were still red although his markings were no longer jagged.

"Kaede told me a way, but first we must help her." Rin said as she led him back to Kaede. Miroku was already bent over her, examining her injuries. He turned when he heard them approach. He was exhausted from his fight with Kikyo. But his eyes conveyed an ugly truth to Sesshomaru. Rin once again sat beside Kaede and shook her.

"Kaede, we have to leave." She said. "Let's go find this lady. Come on, wake up!"

Miroku gently touched her shoulders and drew her away.

"Miroku, I think she is too hurt." Rin said and turned to Sesshomaru and asked, "Will you carry her?"

Sesshomaru sighed and said, "Rin, let her rest now. She is at peace."

"What are you…" Rin trailed off as the awful truth became clear to her.

"No…No! Please, no!" She sobbed and threw herself at the dead woman, shaking her. "Kaede, please…"

Miroku bowed his head, helpless in comforting the queen. Sesshomaru gritted his teeth against his grief. Kaede had been a wise woman and the only one besides Rin who had always managed to see through his mask. He picked Rin up and began to walk towards the passage he had come through. She beat her fists at him, begging him to carry Kaede because she was too hurt. His beast became restless, picking up on his mate's distress, but Sesshomaru had to ensure her safety first. Miroku trailed behind, after saying a quick prayer for Kaede.

By the time they emerged in Sesshomaru's office, Rin had quieted down, except for the tears still streaming down her face. Miroku was also very pale, both from the fatigue and the shock of recent events. Sesshomaru placed Rin in his chair and went around the desk to where Jaken had fallen. The toad was already cold. Sesshomaru sighed and bowed his head. He had known Jaken from his childhood. He was the only link he had to his father. He was troubled that he could not even give him a proper burial in return for his faithful service. He had but a moment to even grieve for him.

Miroku sat in one of the chairs and stared blankly at nothing in particular. He was jolted out of his shock as Sesshomaru spoke.

"Rin."

The queen gave no indication that she had heard him, but Sesshomaru continued anyway.

"We must leave immediately. What is the way that Kaede spoke of?"

For a while, Rin said nothing. Then she lifted her head and said in a monotone voice, "She said there is a tunnel of some sort beneath the palace, that leads outside the city. Its entrance is in the library. She said Miroku would know and told to search for the lady."

Sesshomaru turned his demon eyes on the librarian. Miroku looked surprised.

"Well, Monk?" Sesshomaru said

"I-I don't know!" Miroku exclaimed "This is the first time I have heard of it!"

"She said for you to look for the lady." Rin said. "She didn't say that you knew, but that you would be able to find it."

"Oh…" Miroku said and suddenly he saw light. "The Lady! Of course!"

"I presume you know now?" Sesshomaru asked as Miroku jumped up from his chair.

"No I don't. But I can find it." He said. "Let's go." He made to leave, but found his way blocked by Sesshomaru.

"How do I know that you too are not a traitor in disguise?" He demanded.

"I am many things, Sesshomaru, never a traitor." Miroku replied calmly. His expression must have been convincing, because Sesshomaru did not object.

"Come Rin." He took the queen's hand and led her to the door.

The library was two floors below, which meant a lot more sneaking. But they need not have bothered since the palace seemed to be empty. Rin averted her eyes from the dead bodies of soldiers, servants and nobles scattered about in various poses of disfigurement. Even the women and children had not been spared. This both angered and saddened the queen. They had taken out the entire palace without her knowledge or more importantly, Sesshomaru's knowledge. 'If Kagura had been here, this would never have happened.' Rin thought grimly and wondered how the people were doing. She remembered what Kaede had told her, but for now she was helpless. Her heart still grieved for the dead Prime Minister, but she was a queen first and foremost, and she had an obligation to her people.

There was a foul stench permeating the palace. Sesshomaru led the way and Miroku brought up the rear. Rin had drawn her knife and all of them felt the presence of the evil aura that seemed to be choking the castle.

"What happened to Naraku?" Miroku asked

"He simply disappeared." Rin told him and her face set in grim determination.

"He took the Jewel, right?" Miroku said and sighed. "So much power in his evil hands…how can we stop this?"

Sesshomaru looked back at Rin, but she remained silent.

'Naraku…I will not let you hurt my people!' Rin thought fiercely.

They reached the library without further mishap. Miroku took the lead now and opened the door to his sanctuary. He quickly hurried around the shelves and tables piled high with scrolls. He led them through the huge room towards one end.

"Are we going to search through the whole thing, Monk?" Sesshomaru demanded from behind. He had placed Rin in front of him and had drawn Bakusaiga. His senses were on full alert for any movement between the dusty shelves. He did not fancy a search of the entire royal library, which was quite vast, to say the least.

"No." Miroku replied. "What we are looking is near here."

The trio rounded a tall shelf and was met with one wall of the library on which hung a few paintings. Miroku lead them onwards, towards the painting of a beautiful woman, dressed in a deep blue kimono in the style of a bygone century.

"I used to call this painting The Lady." Miroku said gesturing to the painting. "Kaede often joked with me about it." He ended sadly.

"So the passage is behind it?" Sesshomaru asked.

"I guess…" Miroku said and tried to move it, but it would not budge. Sesshomaru also tried and failed. This brought a scowl to his face as he thought about what to do.

Rin, meanwhile, was looking around at the nearby shelves. She wondered if she would ever see this room again. She also wondered how she was supposed to defeat a demon as powerful as Naraku. She sighed as she thought of Kaede and Koharu, both dead because of him and his hunger for power. She turned to find that the men had had no luck in finding the passage and were now discussing alternate routes to leave the castle undetected.

'The Lady…' Rin mused as she stood in front of the painting. It was life-size and very life-like. She wondered who the woman in the painting was and why she seemed to have a mysterious look in her expression. It was a beautiful painting, the colors vibrant and the artist obviously skilled. Rin reached out with her left hand, her right still gripping Nightshade, and stroked the hand of the woman in the painting. She had expected a rough canvas, but the surface beneath her hand felt as smooth as silk. Intrigued she stepped closer and stood almost nose-to-nose with the woman. She blinked, and for a moment she swore that the woman in the painting had smiled at her. The next minute, she jumped back, her mouth open in shock.

"Rin!" Sesshomaru called, hearing her gasp of surprise. He raised his sword, ready to annihilate anything that had harmed Rin. Miroku too raised his staff and rushed to the queen's side. Soon all three of them were staring in shock at the painting that had swung open like a door. The beginning of a flight of stairs leading down into darkness could be seen.

"How did you do that?" Miroku exclaimed at the queen.

"I didn't do anything!" She replied. "It opened on its own."

Sesshomaru moved past them and stood at the top of the stairs. His enhanced senses confirmed that there was no one immediately below, hidden in the darkness. If the musty smell was anything to go by, this passage had remained unused for many years. He wondered how Kaede had first come across it. But its history could wait. They needed to get out of the palace, and soon.

"Let's go, Rin." Sesshomaru gestured for the other two to follow as he led the way down the stairs. Rin took one last look at the library and plunged after her mate, into the darkness. Miroku brought up the rear, but paused on the second step.

"What if someone comes this way and sees the open passage?" He asked. "How can we close it?"

The other two had paused at his voice, but no sooner had he spoken than the painting swung shut on its own, plunging them into complete darkness.

"W-what kind of mechanism was that, do you think?" Miroku asked, as he tried to hurry to the others without tripping and falling.

"Not mechanism." Rin said thoughtfully. "I think it was magic."

Silence greeted her words as the other two thought about this.

Rin sighed in frustration as she tried to see anything. She could not even see in front of her face. How were they supposed to get out of here now?

"I can't see a thing!" she said.

Sesshomaru was pondering the same problem. Even with his demon senses, he could not see anything. And his companions were both human. That was when he felt it, a pulse from the sword at his side. He still gripped Bakusaiga in his hand. His other sword, Tenseiga, was merely kept around for sentimental reasons. It had no use as far as he knew. There it was again. If he was not hallucinating, which he was pretty certain he was not, Tenseiga was pulsing where it lay against his hip. Sesshomaru felt a strange feeling come over him, a compulsion to draw Tenseiga. For a moment he did nothing. After all, he was a great lord and nobody commanded him, not even the queen. But Tenseiga pulsed again and he felt that the sword was admonishing him for disobedience. Scowling, Sesshomaru sheathed Bakusaiga and withdrew Tenseiga instead. The sword was glowing with a strange blue light that seemed to be pulsating around it. His companions gasped as they saw this.

"Sesshomaru…?" Rin asked in awe. She had heard Sesshomaru withdraw his other sword, a sword which he refused to withdraw, the sword for which he had no use. Apparently, he did.

"Well, we can see now." He decreed in his icy tone. For the millionth time in his life, he wondered about the hidden powers of this sword.

Sesshomaru held up the sword so that its pale light cast a glow in front of him. He slowly began to descend the stairs and the others followed.


End file.
